Shadow's Heart
by Katana Sidhe
Summary: Rikku finds herself alone, smack dab in a middle of a war against an all consuming darkness, after a terrible disaster occurs at Yuna's wedding where she is rescued by one of the very ones responsible for Spira's destruction... Rikku x ?
1. The Wedding Party

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor claim to own these characters, yadda yadda... Carry on...

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**Shadow's Heart**

_**Chapter One: The Wedding Party**_

"_Eat,drink, and be merry... for tomorrow there'll be Sin..."_

_-- An old Al Bhed proverb, from **Al Bhed Customs and Folktales**, translated by Maechin_

"_Eat, drink, and be merry... for tomorrow there'll be... Vegnagun!"_

_-Toast of an unknown and inebriated Al Bhed of the Machina Faction_

_Eat, drink, and be merry... for tomorrow...Tomorrow..._

_- Graffiti found in the Zanarkand Ruins._

"Weddings are happy occasions... so smile." Rikku forcibly reminded herself as she perched on the foot of High Summoner Braska... or his statue anyway. Leaning casually against his left leg, she scanned the happy faces in the crowd as they chattered and danced beneath garlands of silken flowers and the twinkling golden lights that decorated the hall. Her seat put her at just the right height to see everything that was going on. That certainly made a change. As Rikku watched, a single pearly petal broke off and floated gently to the ground only to be crushed beneath the foot of a stumbling guest. Actually, most of the people crammed into what was once Besaid's temple to Yevon had not been invited at all, but rather had come to crash the party. They all hoped to catch a glimpse of high summoner Yuna, the woman who had saved Spira not once but twice, and her new husband, Tidus, who was not only her guardian when Yuna undertook that not-so-final-after all journey, but was also a blitzball all-star, the finest player in a thousand years. Spira always did love their celebrities, and the marriage of such a pair, even without the romantic story behind it, well, Rikku supposed it wasn't a wonder that so many people had traveled all the way to Besaid just to see it. Yunie had welcomed them all, even if she had really wanted a private wedding, just another sacrifice for the joy of Spira.

_Yunie would do well to be a bit more selfish..._ Like, well, like Rikku supposed that she herself was being. Normally Rikku loved a party, especially when it was celebrating the marriage of two people she adored. She had even helped Yunie plan the whole thing, though admittedly Yuna had decided against incorporating some of Rikku's more flamboyant and decidedly Al Bhed suggestions. This was how Rikku found herself wearing a long demurely cut sea foam green dress instead of the bright purple one she had originally been planning on. Rikku suspected that the blue and green dresses of those in the ceremony had been planned for the sole purpose of matching Yunie's eyes. Yunie was surprisingly devious in that way, and since Rikku wanted Yuna's perfect wedding to go, well... perfect, she had even forgone stringing her hair with the beads and ribbons that usually adorned it, letting her below-waist length blonde locks swing free. She didn't even look like an Al Bhed anymore except for the eyes. You could change their habits, and change their dress, but you couldn't hide the Al Bhed eyes... except with a blindfold of course...or goggles..._the point Rikku, the point... _and her were particularly distinct, the emerald green ribbon running through their depths forming a particularly hypnotic pattern around the irises. They were how Auron had known when Rikku had forced him and the others to take her on as another of Yunie's guardians, though she supposed the fact that she had been climbing out of a large machine was pretty much of a tip off anyway. Rikku glanced down at the gown, smoothing it with a slight frown. Her appearance was just a surface indicator of what was to come, and through all the planning and knowing that Yunie was getting married and going off with Tidus, only today had it truly clicked that everything had to change.

Before, everything had been for Spira, and ok, she'd admit it, maybe making a little extra gil on the side, but now when for the first time there wasn't some threat looming over all their heads, Rikku found that she didn't really know what to do. They all lived happily ever after she supposed, but for Rikku "ever after" seemed a terribly long time. This wedding just marked an ending point in her life, and no new beginnings in sight. Death at least was absolute, but this uncertainty about... well, everything, she just couldn't take. Rikku scowled for a moment as she saw Paine walk through the crowd with Baralai at her arm. This was all _her_ fault.

Perhaps relying on Rikku's ebullient mood over Yunie's wedding celebrations to ward off any tantrums, _not that she had them— _Paine had chosen that very morning to break it to her that she was quitting the Gullwings and moving to Bevelle to be with Baralai. That certainly gave Rikku some pause as she hadn't even realized there was anything going on between the pair, and Rikku always looked for that sort of thing. She should have seen it coming, but as the both of them together probably emoted about half as much as a wooden plank, she couldn't be too critical on herself. Yunie hadn't known either. Besides at least it wasn't Nooj, now _that_ would have been scary. Still it posed a problem. Rikku had known that Yunie was leaving the Gullwings, but now Paine as well... She wasn't entirely sure why this prospect bothered her so much, as most of the time Rikku was positive that Paine was entertaining thoughts of throttling her in her head, and the sphere market was declining anyway. After the Vegnagun fiasco, everyone was more then ready to let things stay buried lest yet another machine of apocalyptic design be revealed. Besides did she really want to cruise around in the airship with her addled older brother? Not to mention one who was disturbingly heartbroken that Yunie had married someone else. Rikku looked around trying to find him among the interlopers, but eventually gave up. He was probably off drunk and crying somewhere. It was at times like these that Rikku really... _really_ prayed that he was adopted, or a foundling, one who had been unsurprisingly left in the desert by his parents... related to a cactuar perhaps. _That_ would certainly explain things.

Rikku sighed, she didn't see her brother, but she did find Gippal, looking both handsome and rakish with his eye patch, and surrounded by his usual bevy of adoring women. Admittedly, Rikku had also once been one of the smitten lot, and she and Gippal had an off again on again relationship over the past few years, but that all changed when she caught him cheating, and with one of those Leblanc syndicate drones of all people. Rikku decided she'd rather not to think of what that said about _her_ if Gippal considered one of them a step up. Anyway, Rikku and Gippal were over for good now. This meant of course that even though the Machina faction was just about the only group of people that remained still interested in spheres, machina, and other reliquaries of the past, since Gippal led the organization, joining them was most assuredly not an option.

As Rikku continued to survey the room, she noticed that she was not the only one to remain aloof from the celebrations. A man leaned in the shadows just beside the door, his arms crossing his chest, having somehow managed to find a space clear of people. He had an odd air about him as he watched the newlyweds, a blank expression on his face. His pale blonde hair, almost silver, fell across his forehead obscuring one of his eyes, but the other she could see even from across the room was a vibrant blue that almost seemed to glow from the shadows. The man wore all black and his outfit was casual, which was strange for a wedding and though many of the men carried ceremonial type swords in decorated sheathes, the one the man wore looked old and unadorned. It was an odd shape as well... intriguing. Rikku got the distinct feeling that he was waiting for something. As if sensing her attention, the man turned his head, his hair falling away from his face as he met her gaze directly. She was caught in the act. _Shoopuff..._ Eyes locked, they stared at each other from across the room almost as if they were engaged in a childish staring contest, like the ones she always lost to Paine... only this time, Rikku couldn't seem to look away.

Of course, that went out the window when only a moment later they both broke off at the sound of a clearly drunk man who began a bumbling monologue about the wonderfulness of the occasion, the two people who had been brought together, and the fineness of the food and drink... emphasis on the drink. Rikku cringed slightly before breaking into an amused smile. Yep, that was her Dad alright. When Cid's speech had declined irrevocably into a half-jilted bawdy Al Bhed bar room song, Yunie stepped forward managed to escort him to one of the built in benches that lined the hall, still retaining complete dignity and grace. Rikku suppressed a smile, she didn't think Yunie'd be able to keep that composure if she actually understood what he was singing, and in fact, all the Al Bhed in the room were laughing hysterically. This was actually for that reason that Rikku didn't go lead her dad off her self, the whole thing was just too funny. By the time Yunie had returned to Tidus's side in the back of the temple, someone else started up their own speech, then another, and another. As they all droned on in turn, Rikku reined her thoughts back to the problem at hand and by the time she remembered the strange man, he was gone.

When the speeches had ended and everyone had gone back to their dancing, Rikku decided that she'd had enough. Glancing over to the right at Yuna and Tidus, she only had to look at them as they danced with one another to know that it was unlikely that either would notice her absence. As she struggled to carefully to climb down off the statue and onto the nearest bench, Rikku saw another person move by dressed all in black, though he was not the man from earlier. He had red hair. While she was focused on redhead, Rikku forgot to pay attention to wear she was stepping and as her foot came down on the end of her dress, she was jerked off of balance, and stumbled forward off of the bench. Immediately Rikku put her arms up to protect herself from the fall, but instead of hitting the ground she was caught by a pair of strong arms. Arms attached to a chest donned in black... Rikku looked up swiftly into the brown eyes and smirking face of yet another stranger, this one a man with sandy blond hair, cut short in the back and long in the front. It wasn't the hair that caught her attention though, but the small black tattoo on the side of his neck, just below his left ear. It looked like a curvy M that almost joined together at the bottom, but not quite. She had only a glimpse though before the man steadied her, she was about to thank him when he spoke, an odd gleam in his eyes.

"You should be more careful, or you might get hurt."

Rikku sighed. _Why does everyone always tell me that?_ Still, she did not get a chance to respond, for he turned swiftly, the creepy smile still playing across his face as he pushed through the crowd and further into the temple. Shaking her head at the rudeness of strangers, even helpful rude ones, Rikku began to slip through the crowd, using her small size to get there more quickly as she ducked under arms and twirled through gaps. She was really quite adept at it. Still, ultimately, the encounter had relieved her a bit, she was obviously wrong about the oddity of the silver haired man's attire, maybe black was some new wedding fashion trend. Finding the press of the crowd increasingly claustrophobic and Rikku found that outside it was only slightly better. She wanted to get away from all of it. Moving away from the ring of blue torchlight that illuminated the pavilion, Rikku walked out into the darkness having decided to head down to the beach. She could think better there, and wouldn't be casting a dark cloud on Yunie's wedding with her troubled thoughts. Rikku was so intent on getting away, that she did not notice when someone slipped out into the darkness after her, quietly following as she made her way down the path.


	2. The Door Opens

**Author's Note:** _Okie, here is the second chapter... this is where the story gets cross-overish and it switches perspectives, as a result, the chapter actually begins with events from before the first chapter, but it hopefully won't be too confusing. Still kind of finding my feet with this fic, however, most likely it will continue with the perspective switch... so without further adieu..._

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**Chapter Two_: The Door Opens_**

_The gate of tomorrow is not the light of heaven, but the darkness in the depths of the earth..._

–_Vincent Valentine's final words_

High on the hill that overlooked Besaid village, there laid the ruins of an old altar to Yevon. The stones were worn and faded with deep grooves in the rock where people had knelt in prayer, asking Yevon to bring them a safe journey... This altar, however, had been abandoned five years ago when Yevon was exposed for the false God that he was: a destructor, and the one who had plagued Spira with Sin. Though people passed it as they went to and from the port, it had become just another ruin to remind Spira of it's harsh past. No one realized that these altars had originally served another purpose, one that dated back to even before the glory days of Zanarkand. It wouldn't be long now before the people of Besaid were reminded again.

As the sun sank beneath the horizon, the air around the altar began to shimmer frantically, as if it were trying to preserve what was left of the light. After a moment, the strange glowing particles crystallized into the shape of the door that rested in the air just a foot over the base of the altar. As suddenly as they appeared, the lights snuffed out leaving an inky void, deeper then the darkest of shadows on a moonless night. The void remained stagnant for a moment then slowly it began to ripple as a man stepped through, tossing his head slightly to move the pale hair from his face as he studied his surroundings. Hearing the faint strains of music as they echoed gently on the hill top, the slilver-haired man, _Riku_, walked forward to get a better look at the village below. Torches had been placed around the village and despite the fact the sun had set, it was in the full swing of activity, most of which was focused around the stone temple that rested on the far edge of town, overlooking the sea. The music came from the pavilion in front of the temple where a vast number of people milled around. He couldn't tell exactly what they were doing, but there was clearly some sort of celebration going on; a wedding, or so he was told.

_The wedding of High Summoner Yuna and Tidus of Zanarkand. _The names held no meaning for him. It was just another world, another test. This might be the one, it might not. Riku no longer cared anymore. He had isolated himself from emotion. He had loved, hated, raged, despaired, and burned with the bitter desire for revenge. In the end... it was all the same...

"Is this the one?"

Riku inclined his head at the sound of the voice that had interrupted his thoughts, but he didn't turn around. Deliberately, he ignored the question. The answer was obvious enough and right world or not, it was doomed.

"You're late."

As Riku spoke, two men came to stand beside him. Ash, the blond who had spoken, glanced at him, a smirk crossing his face as his fingers played against the hilt of his sword; a keyblade, not anywhere near as powerful as the one that Riku had himself, but deadly nevertheless. Ash had that gleam in his eyes that he always did before a mission and Riku recognized it for what it was; the desire to kill. Riku's own eyes were devoid of emotion, as they always were. Cold as ice, they glowed with an eerie blue light, a permanent effect of that day so many years ago, when Riku had been consumed by the light only to find himself cast back into darkness. However, that was his own fault, and Riku no longer regretted the choices that he had made.

Jitt, his other companion, stepped away from the pair and onto the path that wound its way down to the village. Pausing for a moment, he turned to look at Riku, an odd expression appearing in his black eyes.

"_They're_ restless tonight..."

Riku nodded his head in the slightest of movements. He understood the redhead's concern. Riku had been forced to kill five of the wraiths just to get through the gate when they had always avoided him in the past. It was no surprise that Ash and Jitt had arrived late. They did not have the same level of control over the dark creatures that Riku had. The shadowy creatures must have been crawling all over them. Perhaps it was just as Jitt said and their behavior could be attributed to restlessness, but Riku could sense there was something different about this world. Maybe they had finally found what they were searching for.

"If we're quick, it won't be a problem... Let's go." Riku stopped for a moment letting the others go ahead as he turned to look at the portal. The shadows were seeping through it now and dark energy crackled from the void. The storm would hit and before the night was through, another star would be erased from the heavens. Sad really, but the events had already been set in motion.

_Nothing to stop it now..._

Riku turned and swiftly made his way down the hill, the music from the party getting louder with every step. He was about half way down the path when he began to pick up the sound of a man singing along to the music. The voice was off key, the words were slurred beyond recognition, and as Riku drew closer, he quickly realized that he would not have understood it anyway. It seemed like pure gibberish, but the feeling behind it was clear, despite the fact that it was sung in a manner that was not unlike the yowling of a dying cat.

Eventually he saw the source of the horrible noise; a sobbing drunk man with a sandy mohawk on his largely shaved head. Sitting on a bench that rested at a place where the path forked, he held an empty mug in his hands, cradling it close to his body. The man looked up as Riku and his companions came into sight, and an expression of anger flickered across his flushed face. He jumped to his feet, stumbled, then stood up as straight as he could, shouting at them with the same slurred gibberish that he had sung the song. He waved his arms frantically, the mug still clasped in his right hand, clearly wanting them to leave. When none of the other men moved, he hurled mug at them with terrible aim, and the mug sailed harmlessly off to the side. The situation might have been comical, if it weren't so damn annoying. They were pressed for time as it was. Riku was about to handle the situation when Ash stepped forward, clearly having reached his limit. Removing the blade from its sheath, he struck swiftly, wasting no time in going for the kill. Skillfully, Ash ran the edge of the keyblade deeply across the man's throat and his cries turned into a deep gurgle as the blood flowed freely from his neck. The man was dead before he hit the ground. Riku stepped forward, having drawn his own keyblade the moment Ash had moved towards the singing man. Forcefully, he used his blade to push Ash's to the ground, and held it there as he stared coldly at him.

"That was unnecessary."

Ash began to laugh a little, pleased that he had gotten to kill, even if the man hadn't put up a fight.

"Aw come on Riku, he was obnoxious. He deserved to die just for the singing alone."

Riku's expression hardened and eventually the smile slid off of Ash's faceHe tried again.

"Look, he's going to die anyway. What's it matter?"

_Good question... What did it matter?_

Riku sighed in annoyance, releasing Ash's weapon as he took a step back.

"We only kill when we have to or we risk everything. They find the body, and they'll look to anyone that's suspicious. We won't be able to get access to this summoner woman. We need to get to her before _they_ do."

Riku smirked and returned this keyblade to its sheath.

"Besides, continue to indulge in these killing whims of yours, and _you _will be their next prey."

Ash blanched, it was a point well taken. Still, Riku knew the idea wouldn't stop him for long. Ash just couldn't help himself. Without glancing down, Riku stepped over the dead man and continued down the hill.

"Move him out of the way then catch up." Riku tossed the orders back over his shoulder, but kept walking. He knew Ash would do as he said. The man was a psychopath, but he knew when to stop pushing... most of the time.

When Ash had joined them again, they were at the edge of the crowded pavilion. There were far too many people to account just for the villagers. This was good. It meant they'd more readily blend in with the crowd. Riku nodded at Jitt.

"We'll split up. You know what to do." Then turning, Riku looked at Ash. "Wait out here and keep an eye on the storm and make sure that if some one leaves, it's not the high summoner."

This was of course unlikely, but there was no sense in taking risks. With that said, Riku slipped into the crowds, pushing his way through the pavilion and into the temple. The platform just inside the entrance gave Riku the perfect place to scope out the people in the room and though at first there was no free space for him to watch unbothered, he had only to give a group of partiers a chill look before they cleared out, unconsciously sensing the danger. Leaning against the wall, he searched the room, immediately zeroing in on the happy couple. He watched for a while, trying to determine if the woman, Yuna, was any different from the rest. Frankly, he didn't sense anything from her. Sure she'd done some selfless acts, but Riku was positive that if she were the one he'd know it.

_Well if she isn't the one they want, then it's their own damn fault. _

Just by seeing her, Riku knew that it was unlikely that the search would end with this world. Still, there was something here. He felt the niggling sensation in the back of his mind, an alarm going off in his head. Tearing his gaze away from the summoner and her husband, he looked around the room, trying to pinpoint the source. It was no good, there were too many people—_No...There_.

Glancing up, Riku noticed a girl sitting at the foot of one of the large statues that lay around the hall. A cascade of blonde hair flowed down over her shoulders and a grim expression marked her delicate features. Riku found himself wondering just what it was that she was thinking about so severely. Despite the expression, the petite girl reminded Riku of pixie, all she needed was the wings...

Somewhat annoyed by the way his thoughts had turned, and still uncertain about what it was that he sensed, Riku directed his gaze back to Yuna and Tidus. Still watching the girl out the corner of his eye, Riku saw that she was spying on him as well. Turning his head, he met the girl's green gaze full on, slightly amused at the embarrassed blush that reached her face when she realized that she had been caught staring. He didn't think he was mistaken in his judgment; there was something distinctly uncanny about her. As someone began to speak, Riku turned to listen, deciding that once he placed the mark on the high summoner, he'd go found out what it was that he was sensing.

With that in mind, Riku moved away from the door, slipping through the crowd so he could get close enough to do what he had to. The speech eventually turned into a song, and Riku recognized that he was using the same language used by the one that Ash had killed earlier. Apparently it wasn't gibberish after all. Riku filed it away in his mind as yet another piece of useless information and reaching into his pocket, he pulled out as small crystal vial filled with a viscous red liquid. With extreme care, Riku extracted the stopper, brushing all the excess liquid onto the side of the opening, leaving a single drop on the stopper. As the singing grew worse, the summoner left husband's side to gently lead the drunken lout towards the wall. When she passed him by, Riku turned towards her, and reaching out, he gently pressed the end of the stopper into the back of her veil. To anyone watching it looked like he was just another one of those creepy people who wanted the claim that they had "touched" the high summoner. No one would think much about it. He removed his hand and the stopper quickly and it was doubtful that the woman had felt anything at all, but the mark was there. Unseen but to the watchful eye, a speck of deep crimson now marred the back of the summoner's wedding veil. _Perfect_.

Replacing the stopper, he put the vial back into his pocket and looked around. Now he just had to find Jitt and then he'd go after the girl. After a cursory check, Riku saw that the other man was not in the temple and once again Riku wove his way through the crowds to the exit only to find that both Jitt and Ash were together, standing together off to the side.

_So much for divide and conquer..._

"It's done. You can handle it from here, Jitt. I am going to check on the portal. Ash you go too." Jitt nodded and headed back inside, but before Ash could follow Riku put his arm out to stop him. Ash gave him a questioning look.

"Before it happens... kill the groom."

Those were orders from above rather then Riku's own and ultimately he supposed it was best. It would be a clean death at least, rather then the slow agony of being consumed by the darkness. When viewed in that way, Riku supposed he really shouldn't have cared that Ash had killed so carelessly. Smiling, Ash turned to follow Jitt and Riku turned towards the end of the pavilion, wanting to see how much time they had before it began. The storm clouds had already begun to roll down the hillside. Riku gave it twenty minutes.

_Twenty minutes until the end..._

That wasn't much time to find out about that girl. So deciding to waste no more of it, he turned only to see the object of his thoughts rushing past him into the night, away from all the festivities. Without a second thought, Riku began to follow her, keeping his presence unknown as he watched, curious to see what she was going to do. He was surprised when she didn't stop in the town, but instead began to walk the path that led up to the portal, seemingly oblivious to odd lights coming from the dark clouds at the top of the hill. As she walked, she began to hum, still happily ignorant of the fact that she was being followed. Nearing the crossroads, Riku glanced around warily. He wished that he'd asked Ash just where exactly he had put the body... The girl turned away from the hilltop and down the other path and after allowing an appropriate distance, Riku did as well. Stopping abruptly, he saw it, the dead man with the mowhawk, lying on the left side of the path. Riku shook his head. This was not exactly what he had in mind when he had told Ash to move it.

_Lazy bastard..._

Unbelievable as it was, so wrapped up in her thoughts and her humming, the girl didn't even notice until she was literally on top of him. As her foot hit the solid mass of the body, the girl tripped falling down in the dirt next to him. Riku sighed. She just _had_ to walk on that side of the road. After a moment of cursing in that strange babbling tongue, there was another moment of silence, and then girl released a shriek. Wasting no more time, Riku rushed forward. Like it or not, now was the time to make his presence known.


	3. The Storm

**Author's Note: **This is an example of where that whole Lewis Carol quote "_Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop_" really makes absolute sense. It's shorter then the others chapters, but it just seemed to end... of course the fact that it's currently 3:20 in the morning might have something do with it... nah... I think that it's a good stopping point, you'll have to judge for yourself and unless you just skipped over this note, you have no idea waht the frock I am talking about anyway... I ramble... On the plus side, this just means I still know exactly which way the story is going, so no writer's block as of yet, knock on wood. knock knock If I reiterated a bit from the first chapter, I apologize... and if you see any extraneous commas you have my permission to whack me over the head with a large blunt object. Those damn commas will be the death of me...

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**Chapter Three**: **_The Storm_**

"_The offing was barred by a black bank of clouds, and the tranquil water-way leading to the uttermost ends of the earth flowed somber under an overcast sky--seemed to lead into the heart of an immense darkness"._

_-- __Joseph Conrad_

As Rikku drew away from the party and out into the night, the pressing feeling of claustrophobia diminished, but a feeling of dread remained in the pit of her stomach. She didn't understand it. For the first time in her life she was free of all obligations. She should be ecstatic. The Al Bhed were by free spirited by nature, that's why they branched out into so many different fields, and constantly changed their lifestyles. While Rikku had always been glad to do what she could for Spira, what she could do for Yunie, she had spent that time stifled, restricted, succumbing to childish antics to keep up the pretense that everything was going to be ok. When Yunie was saved and Tidus seemed lost, her energy was spent on making it right. _It's right now... it's right!_ She was always the happy one, the quirky one, the one who_ did not _get depressed Rikku was the mannequin whose face was forever locked in a smile, even as the world went to hell. She was the ballerina in the box, twirling and twirling, trapped in dance over which she had no control, so all she could do was move with the beat. Yunie knew that dance and that gave Rikku the strength to dance it with her: _The ultimate masquerade.._. Could she rip of the mask? Would she find herself in the mirror, or find only a shell, filled to the brim with unshed tears. Rikku had listened to Tidus's sphere... "_Listen to my story..." _That was all her life amounted to; a mere echo in someone else's story...

Rikku shuddered slightly, deeply disturbed by the direction of her thoughts. They were completely and utterly unlike her. It was as if some fiend rested on her shoulder, reaching into her mind to stir up shadows... Rikku breathed deeply of the humid night air, trying to push the disturbing images she had conjured from her mind, and it suddenly dawned on her that perhaps this feeling of foreboding had nothing to do with her uncertainty over the future, but something else... Rikku sighed. She was just being ridiculous. In order to make herself feel better, she began to hum the _Hymn of the Fayth_ as she walked. As one of the heretic Al Bhed "heathens", Rikku had never viewed the hymn to be some sacrosanct expression of faith in Yevon, but a meaningful song nonetheless. It was a song of peace, and she used it to clear the turmoil in her mind. It was this quality of the song that she was certain had held Sin-Jecht so spellbound. As the clear sound of her own humming rang out into the night, Rikku felt soothed. Her feet ceased to drag and she even began to entertain thoughts of going for a swim once she reached the beach. As she reached the crossroads, she forced her head up. She had walked with her gaze cast down, partially due to the nature of her thoughts, but mostly for practicality, the nights were dark on the island and she had to be very careful where she stepped. She wanted to see the beach gleaming in the moonlight in all its pristine glory. Now that she was paying closer attention her surroundings, she found that it was a lot darker then it had been when she left. As Rikku looked up, she noticed a group of thick black clouds, blotting out her view of the stars. She frowned. Maybe there was going to be a—

Rikku's foot hit something solid, and propelled forward, she tumbled to the ground, striking her right elbow hard on the rocky soil. Rikku swore at her clumsiness.

"Cruubivv! Knayd zicd knayd, hela kuehk, Rikku... Naym csuudr..."

_Shoopuff! great just great, nice going Rikku... Real smooth..._

She clutched at her elbow, trying to ignore the painful throb as she turned to see what had tripped her. Her expression darkened even further when she saw in the faint light that it was none other then her older brother, who_ had _gone off, just as she suspected. Rikku rolled away from him, thoroughly irritated. She glared at him, ready to give him a piece of her mind.

"Oui tnihgah cuh uv cysymyhtan! Fryd yna oui tuehk zicd moehk eh dra settma uv dra—"

_You drunken son of samalander! What are you doing just lying in the middle of the—_

Rikku broke off from her shouting when she realized that her brother hadn't made a wound, not a whimper, not a peep, not one... not even when she had fallen over him. Her body leaned forward of it's own will, despite the inner voice telling her that she must not look... at that moment there was a faint flash of light, illuminating the features on her brother's face before flickering back into darkness again. The one look was enough, the deep gash, the widely staring eyes, looking up at the sky unseeing... glazed over in _death._ She began to scream...

Rikku had seen dead bodies before, she had seen people die; the look in a person's eyes in that final moment, and she had seen the fiends that spawned from the violence when an innocent life was taken. Rikku didn't really remember her mother. She had died when Rikku was young, and without any strong memories to recall her, her death just didn't havethe full effect. The closest thing that resembled a memory was a familiar voice singing in the dark. Her brother though... he had always been there. Sure he tried to bully her and was as daft as they come, but he had a good heart, and had always looked out for her. Sure, he was responsible for her fear of thunderstorms— Rikku had been swimming in the water when a fiend came after her. Her brother had seen andused a spell of lightning to zap the fiend. The first time he missed, hitting Rikku instead, but that wasn't the point. He had been trying to save her and as Rikku went into shock, her pulled her out of the water and carried her all the way back home for help, whispering to her all the while. _Oui'mm pa ug. Ed'c ymm kuehk du pa ug. You'll be ok, it's all going to be ok._ At the age of six, her big brother was her hero. Rikku had believed him then, but now... It was never going to be ok ever again.

Rikku's scream turned into a loud choking sob, as she pressed her hand against her brother's face. Then she screamed again, this time in anger. She would kill the bastard that did this. Hearing a sound behind her, Rikku whirled and slapping aside the outstretched arm, she darted out of reach. Her eyes widened when she saw who it was. His silvery hair and the burning blue eyes were unmistakable.

"You! What are you doing here!"

Rikku glanced down at her brother then up at the man again. She searched his face for answers and finding none she let her gaze fall downward, eventually coming to rest on the sword he carried, the outline of which was visible in the dark. She looked up swiftly again, her eyes blazing.

"Did you do this? Did you kill him!"

The man stared at her for a moment then very slowly he shook his head.

"No... It wasn't me."

Rikku scowled at him, the tears still streaming down her cheeks as she gestured towards his weapon.

"You expect me to believe that!"

The man shrugged slightly, but his eyes never left her face.

"I don't care what you believe..."

This only made Rikku angrier, the guy was a jerk. Her brother was lying dead on the ground, and that was all he could say! Rikku didn't have time for this. She had to go find her father, had to get..._help_. Kneeling next to her brother, she pressed a kiss on his clammy forehead, and got to her feet again. _Pops..._ What was she going to say to him? Deciding to just ignore the man, she hurriedly stepped past him to head back to the village. Rikku yelped when his hand shot out and he grabbed her wrist, swinging her back around so she faced him. He once again stood between her and the way back to the village. Pulling her arm out of his grasp she glared furiously up at him though he still had the same obnoxiously expressionless look on his handsome face.

"Hey! Get away from me, what's the big idea. I have to go back... to tell them."

_To warn them. _Rikku tried to step by again, but the man moved to block the way again. She felt tears prickling at her eyes again, and she hurriedly brushed them away. "Let me by you big jerk!"

The man shook his head again. "You can't go back there. It's not safe." Rikku paled, a chill running down her spine.

"What do you mean _it's not safe! _You were following me..." _Nod_. Rikku stared at him in horror as she that his eyes weren't just bright; they were actually glowing in the dark. The man took a step forward and instinctively Rikku took a step back.

"Look, I— damn it!"

The man broke off as Rikku whirled and sprinted down the path to the beach, kicking off her shoes so she could run faster. She could hear him behind her which only made her run harder. When she reached the sandy shore, Rikku was hit by a gust of wind, and a sight that made her freeze in her tracks. The sky had completely darkened with a mass of turbulent dark clouds. They churned furiously with strange purple and red lights. They moved quickly, writhing, and pulsing with dark energy, the ocean bubbled in response, the waves crashing violently against the beach, which glowed with an eerie light, all in reaction to the storm which almost seemed like an entity unto itself as shadowy tendrils spiraled down from the clouds, covering the land with dark shadows. Rikku's hair flagged violently in the wind as she stared transfixed at the raging storm. She forgot everything for the moment and didn't even care when the man came to stand beside her, she tilted her head as she addressed him.

"What... what _is_ it!"

From the corner of her eyes, Rikku could see him turn, watching her profile with a cold light in his blue eyes.

"The end."


	4. Dissolution

**Authors Note: **Titles are bitches, and they should die... Point taken with the long paragraph remark, in word it is all nice and double spaced. Unfortunately I think I fail miserably in trying to break them up in a logical manner, so yeah still screwy, hopefully though I _will_ at some point show improvement on that. ((Kicks document editor))

Also, while I absolutely adore each and every review, I mean let's face it, the reason I put the story up, the reason anyone posts their stories is so people can read it, if possible could you guys refrain from including any spoilerish things in the reviews? I personally sometimes use the reviews to decide whether or not I am going to read a story, so I figure it might be best to leave things out, just in case other people do the same, and don't want to know to read a review and find out what happens before they read the story. Hehe, I am always the one to brutally bitch slap anyone who spoils an ending for me, so I figure it might as well do to consider other people who are as testy about such things as I. Anyway, thanks for your remarks, I really appreciate them! Though if I am just being psycho then feel free to ignore me.

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**Chapter Four: Dissolution**

_I tried so hard  
And got so far  
But in the end  
It doesn't even matter  
I had to fall  
To lose it all  
But in the end  
It doesn't even matter_

_- Lyrics from "In the End", a popular song from just after the end of the tenth Calm._

_The End..._ The ominous words echoed through Rikku's mind as she watched the malevolent movement of the inky black clouds. Eventually she tore her gaze away and instead stared at the one who stood beside her, looking for the lie in his eyes. A million questions ran through her mind, but ultimately his meaning was clear. _You can't go back there. It's not safe... _Rikku took a step away from him.

_No..._

"No! Not today!" Rikku shouted at him, shaking her head in violent determination, her hands clenched into fists. Hoping to catch him off guard, she shoved him as hard as she could and then whirling around, she sprinted down the beach. The island curved around at about the distance of a blitzball sphere away, and a narrow path wound up one of rocky slopes at the end. It was steep, overgrown, and treacherous, but it was an alternate route to the temple. For this reason, Rikku had run for the beach instead of trying to dodge by the pale haired man again.

She heard him shout out another warning, but seemed to have stopped. Still she didn't look back lest she find him right behind her. As the wind picked up, the sky darkened even further, and Rikku saw that another bank of the dark clouds and appeared from other end of the island. They all seemed to aggregate into a dark amorphous mass that centered over the lighted temple that she could see, shining like a beacon at the top of the steep hillside, a sanctuary against the dark.

_Just get to the others..._

Twenty feet... fifteen...ten... she really could here him following now, the scuffle of sand being kicked up by the boots. She knew the sound well. After all she _was_ from the desert. Five feet... there it was, Rikku dodged into the underbrush that littered the hillside. Her hair caught on the twigs, her dress ripped, and her skin was scratched by thistles, her feet bloody and beaten by the sharp rocks she trod upon, but she didn't care. Breaking out onto the path, she began the climb, scrambling up, dodging branches as she went, and using her hands at the particularly steep places. Fortunately she was agile and lithe, her strength had always laid in her speed, and that was her advantage now over the man who followed. She could hear him curse as his progress was slowed by the brush, and that gave Rikku the will to move even faster...not fast enough though. The man jumped forward grabbing her foot, and immediately Rikku kicked back. Their rough movements caused the rocks to skitter and as the man lost his balance tumbling back down the hill into darkness. Rikku listened for a moment to see if he was ok, images of his broken body lying on the beach danced through her head, but she couldn't dwell on it. She kept moving.

When she was halfway to the top, the wind died, and an eerie calm settled over the landscape. There was no sound, but for the movement as the pair made their way through the brush.

_Silence..._

A tremor of fear ran through Rikku's body. This wasn't right, there should be music... She tried to remember if she had heard it on the beach, but she had been concentrating on other matters, and besides, with the wind there was no telling if she would have detected it anyway... But here, now... she should hear them playing. A moment later, the screaming began. Not just one, but _hundreds_ creating a cacophonic chorus of shrill shouts, the horror in each was the only theme.

The only time Rikku had heard anything remotely close to this was when her Home had been destroyed, and that was mostly the agony of the loss, not the unadulterated fear that seemed to emanate from above... There would be no sanctuary at the top.

As Rikku looked frantically up to try and learn what was happening, a sinuous murky arm reached down from the skies towards the temple, ten times the circumference of the black tendrils she had seen extending along the beach.

Even though her heart clenched at the thought of what she would find when she reached the summit, she determinedly pressed on. As she reached the top, she was struck by the emptiness of her surroundings. For the most part the screams had died down, and there was no one around. Steeling herself, Rikku took a step forward only to have her bare foot land in something cold... squishy. She looked down with great apprehension to find that she was standing in what appeared a viscous pool of _shadows_, as if attracted to the warmth of her body, the blob began to flow as serpentine tendrils snaked their way up her leg. Stifling a shriek, Rikku kicked out and the mass went flying. As it hit the ground it broke into pieces each of which grew and solidified into odd creatures of which she had never seen the like.

As if of one mind, they turned to look at her, and multiple pairs of pale yellow eyes blinked at her, before moving forward, claws dripping with shadowy goop. Rikku reached frantically for her knives only to remember that she was still in wedding clothes and obviously had not thought to arm herself. Rikku turned to see if there was an opening she could slip through, only to find that her way was blocked by more of the horrible wraiths. She was surrounded and weaponless, an odd smile came to her face. She guessed it really was the end. It quickly vanished though, when the closest of the creatures leapt at her with a deep hiss, and she flinched throwing up her hands to ward off the descending creature.

Suddenly, there flash of metal as someone landed in front of her cutting the creature down with a single swipe of a sword. He turned, nodding briefly, then moved to the next fiend, systematically cutting them down.

_I didn't kill him after all._

Rikku found that she was relieved, and not just because he had saved her from the strange fiends. Fiends not included, Rikku had never killed anyone in her life. Still her gratitude did not mean that she was going to stick around, and while the man was occupied, she slipped away heading towards the temple entrance, dodging as more of the creatures sprang up from the earth itself. As she reached the pavilion, she was met with pure chaos, fiends everywhere, people running away only to be pounced on by the seemingly endless numbers of fiends. While she watched, a couple was literally sucked into the shadows and they didn't come out again... And the dead... _oh the dead_... They lay around in piles, their party clothes soaked in blood, and in each one, there was a bloody in the left side of their chest. Every last one of them... She thought she was going to be sick...

Rikku shook her head and kept moving, staying close to the temple walls, not wanting to attract attention to herself. The door to the temple was closed now, and she couldn't decide if it was a good thing or bad. As she reached it, she pulled on thick doors, breathing a sigh of relief as they opened. Even though she knew they could not be locked, she somehow expected them to be magically welded shut.

The first thing Rikku did when she stepped in the door was stumble over Gippal's body, his hands outstretched to protect his lover, also dead. A tear trickled down her face as she remembered her earlier harsh thoughts towards him and the woman who had replaced her. She had really loved him once, and it appeared that he really loved her... Rikku took in the details of her still face, the curly brown hair, and the deep brown eyes. It was a nice face, and the girl had not deserved Rikku's animosity. She wasn't just replaceable clone. Rikku sniffed, and finally turned away, looking to the main area of the temple, where the sounds of swordplay echoed off the walls.

Rikku recoiled at the scene before her. There were still more bodies of those who had fallen, their eyes cast blankly upward, their faces frozen in horror. All of the flowers had fallen now, and the floor was littered with the garlands and bodies, the bloods leeching into the white petals staining them red, while the lights remained twinkling happily from above. Ignoring the carnage, two men moved swiftly across the floor, locked into battle. Tidus and the same black-clad blond who had broken her fall. Tidus jumped forward slashing with his buster sword, but Blondie turned at the last instant and the blade whizzed harmlessly through empty air. Using the opportunity as Tidus was caught in the momentum of the swing, the blond turned smacking Tidus in the back with the flat side of his own odd looking blame. Tidus fell forward and Rikku heard a shout, turning her head to see Yuna struggling in the grip of a Redheaded man. Blondie laughed at her scream, thoroughly enjoying the fight, he stepped forward to strike the final blow when Tidus kicking out his foot, knocking the man off his feet. Now both were on the ground, scrambling to their feet, and as they stood, their swords clashed again.

Rikku took a step forward to go help when she heard a weak voice call her name... her father.

"Rikku girl, is that you?"

She walked towards the sound, trying to discern Cid from the other bodies. Finally she found him, sitting, his back against one of the statues. His dark shirt was wet, and as Rikku rushed over, she saw that it was soaked in blood. Rikku knelt next to him, and her father lifted a hand to her face.

"Yeah Pops, it's me..."

A smile appeared on Cid's worn and weary face, but he still looked as if he had aged twenty years.

"Rikku girl..."

Rikku bit her fist so she wouldn't cry as she leaned forward to hear what he had to say.

"I'm too old for this shit."

Cid wheezed with laughter, but it quickly turned into coughs. Choking back a hysterical sob, she nodded squeezing her dad's hands.

"Me too, Pops. Me too..."

Cid nodded.

"Your brother? He's alright?"

Rikku forced herself to smile as the tears ran down her face. She nodded once.

"He's safe... He's fine... You'll be too, Pops!"

It was a nice lie and Cid breathed a sigh of relief as he let his head fall back. This was what he needed to here. His children were alive. His eyes slowly drifted shut, then they fluttered open again as he looked at her, his pale green eyes shining.

"Stay out of trouble Rikku girl!"

Rikku knew that this was his way of expressing his love, and she nodded as she watched his eyes close shut for the final time.

"I will Pops... I will."

Rikku slowly got to her feet again, her body shaking with tears. She turned back to the center of the room and as she walked forward the door blew open, and a powerful force sent her flying across the floor. She hit the stone of the wall and collapsed, her whole body throbbing in pain. She lifted her head to see a large shadowy figure enter the room. It looked like a man whose proportions had been stretched, unbelievably tall, he seemed to be another variety of those shadowy creatures. It surveyed the room, and for a moment it's eyes rested on Rikku and it's face twisted into a malicious smile and she could see a predatory intelligence in his golden eyes. He might be made of the same substance, but he wasn't just some mindless fiend. Rikku shuddered under the force of his gaze, and despite the pain she pulled herself up.

When the creature had entered, Tidus and the blond man had paused fighting for a brief moment, only to continue again. They were still evenly matched, but as the creature drew closer to Yuna, Tidus grew increasingly agitated in his fear for her. Yuna had stopped struggling by now, and the redhead shoved her, propelling her towards the shadowy being. Yuna fell forward, but regained her balance, standing tall as the creature closed the gap between them. Her face had an expression that Rikku had seen before. Yuna had worn it through out the journey to fight Sin. She stared the man-like shadow wraith down as he got within a foot of her. Her pose was serene despite the fact that her wedding dress was torn and bloodstained, her hair had fallen from it's coiffure, and she had long since lost her veil. She had never looked more beautiful in her life. She turned to look at Tidus, and her sorrowful eyes belied the smile she gave him.

"Tidus, my love. We'll meet again."

The creature smiled again swiftly reaching out a taloned hand and shoving into her chest, tendrils of liquid shadow latching onto Yuna's dress. There was a brilliant flash of light as the wraith pulled his hand free, her heart. Not a bloody pulsing organ, but a crystal perfectly shaped into a heart, but for a slight flaw, a tiny nebulous seed in it's core. Yuna fell to the ground, lifeless.

"Yuna!"

Tidus screamed, and Rikku screamed along with him... As he ran to Yuna's side, the blond used his distraction, and Tidus was cut down, stabbed in the back.The sword fell out of his hands sliding across the floor, and he slumped forward, his hand outstretched reaching for Yuna's, missing by mere inches. Rikku felt all of her pain and anger boiling within her aimed atthe men and the evil being responsible. Tears ran down her face. Everything Yuna and Tidus had done, everything Rikku had done to protect Yuna, to save Spira... it all amounted to nothing now. She didn't know where Paine was or Baralai, but there was no doubt in her mind that they were lost as well. Everyone she loved was dead. Rikku trembled violently with her sorrow and rage, and her vision blurred over slightly with tears. Dimly she registered that the two men were talking, ignoring her presence like she was already dead.

"Well damn, I guess we have to keep searching."

This from the blond man, his voice casual. The redhead nodded.

"What did you expect? They're all the same... We should get out of here now, while there is still time."

The wraith at this point turned and began to walk towards Rikku, the same grotesque grin on his face. The blond just shrugged, then he looked past Rikku towards the entrance.

"Riku, where've you been?"

Finally the rage bubbled over and Rikku ran forward. The men's words didn't make sense to her, and her surroundings had diminished. There was nothing but pain...

_The sword._

When Tidus had fallen, the sword had landed near the center of the room. There was still time for her to grab it. She'd get that demon, and those men too. She needed to know how this could have happened, but she was so angry, her mind couldn't even translate to the common tongue.

"Oui pycdyntc! Fro tysh ed? Fryd tet drao ajan tu du oui!"

_You bastards! Why damn it? What did they ever do to you?_

An amused smile crossed the blond's face as the two men's heads swiveled to actually acknowledge her. Rikku made a dash to snatch the weapon when she was hit hard in the head with the hilt of a sword, a keyblade, and the room descended into darkness...


	5. This is the Way the World Ends

**Author's Note: **This chapter is pretty much me being evil mwahahaha! Though seriously it has some quite relevant stuff if you look for it.

As to those questions, if you wish to find the answers you seek... read on Macduff! I will say though, that technically anything is possible and feel free to take that any way you like :).

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**Chapter Five: This is the Way the World Ends**

_This is the way the world ends, not with a bang, but with a whimper._

_-Unknown _

Riku had seen no point in lying to her, at least about this anyway. Her world was doomed and she might as well know it. Riku remembered the first time he had seen the storm, those swirling clouds of Armageddon flashing with purple and blue fire. The storm had eventually consumed his world, the Moiria Islands. At the time Riku had been seeking excitement, adventure, but most of all to be free from his small enclosed world. He didn't fear the darkness that swept over his island home; it was his means for escape. Perhaps if he _had_ been afraid, his life would have turned out differently. As he had this thought the image of a girl entered his mind, a girl with brilliant red hair and eyes as blue as the ocean...deceptive eyes. Riku retracted his earlier thought.

_No, it probably wouldn't have..._

Riku turned to study the small blonde girl, relieved that he had at least managed to keep her from heading back to the wedding. He didn't know exactly who she was, or what her role was to be, but there was something... _a whisper of a memory..._. Somewhere, deep inside of him, he knew with an absolute certainty that she must not be killed. _At least not today anyway... _

At that point the girl turned to him and began to shout, almost echoing his thoughts, though she meant something else entirely.

"No! Not today!"

Then unbelievably the girl pushed him and took off again. Her shove didn't do much physically, but it did give him pause. He knew she was upset and he could understand that. The man that Ash had killed was clearly a relative of some kind... but she was being stupid. Though she didn't have a reason to trust him, she could just look to the sky for her evidence. Apparently though, he should have held back with his warning. Riku was used to dealing with people who had more of a desire for self-preservation, who looked for their safety above all else. Good or evil, when faced with the darkness, they all acted in the same manner. _Countless voices asking for mercy, begging not to die..._

"If you go... you'll only find darkness and death."

He let his words ring out, but he _was_ tempted just to let her go. If she refused to listen to his warnings, then why waste the effort? He sighed, knowing he couldn't do that and as he followed her movement with his eyes, he saw the light glimmering from the high embankment at the far end of the beach. She was going to try to climb up the steep embankment to get to the temple. Releasing an annoyed sigh, Riku sprinted after her. As she reached the other end of the beach, she paused for a moment, apparently looking for the path. She scrambled up unto and unstable ledge and as Riku made a dodge for her ankle, at that point the ledge began to crumble beneath their combined weight. Riku would have been fine if the girl hadn't kicked at him at just that moment, knocking him off balance to fall with the shattered pieces of rock. Uttering a curse, he fell back all the way down to the bottom of the embankment, hitting the ground with a thump, mere inches away from the beach that would have softened the impact of the fall. Still, he had endured worse. Scowling he picked himself up and started up the mountain again.

_Great, just great. She's almost more trouble then she's worth..._

It would help if Riku knew exactly what she was. He had some ideas, but nothing more and despite the fact that at this point he'd very much like to throttle the little blonde, but leaving her to die here was just not a viable option.

Hurrying up the hill, Riku heard the sounds of screaming and knew without a doubt that _they _had begun there attack. Shortly after, Riku heard the girl shriek and he began to run faster. With his keyblade drawn, he propelled himself up over the last rise, moving just in time to cut down one of the lesser wraiths as it jumped for the girl. As he sliced the creature in two, the keyblade briefly glimmered with a pure white light before fading to the normal black metal. A look of bewilderment crossed Riku's face. The keyblade had been dead for so long...

He didn't have time to think about it and he quickly moved to cut down the rest of the wraiths that threatened the girl. While he was dealing with them, he could see the girl run off out of the corner of his eyes, right towards the center of it. Hurriedly, Riku dispatched two more, before they finally shied away as he willed, far too slowly for his liking. While death and destruction was part of their nature, they_ could_ be controlled; directed to attack or to halt an attack. Riku was even able to mold the amorphous shadow creatures into the very likeness of a person, all the better to fight with. Their disregard of his effort to impose his will on them, even if it was only temporary, made him distinctly uneasy. To Riku it could mean only two things, for some reason his heart had become more susceptible, _unlikely_, or it was something about this world. Hopefully it was the high summoner.

_Or not..._

Riku ran out into the pavilion to find the wraiths wreaking havoc, but the little blonde was nowhere in sight. Only a few survivors remained, but they'd be dead soon. Hopefully, the same could not be said of the girl. Riku shook his head and ran for the temple when he heard the deep growling that marked the arrival of the Shedim, Jitt must called it forth. He paused looking over to see the large creature rise from the ground where one of the arms of the storm had been only moments before. It immediately scanned the area, _sensing_. The Shedim stayed in this same pose, almost seeming to sniff the wind, before focusing on the temple. Riku frowned, it should have automatically known where to go, thus the whole process of marking the woman's veil. The liquid was made of an essence of purified heart's blood. All of the Shedim were drawn to it, even in the slightest amounts, and this one should be no different. If it needed to search something or someone was screwing with it. Riku narrowed his eyes and glance around, finding no more then the dead, the dying, and the all-consuming shadows. Still, better to be sure, and Riku decided to wait until the Shedim was in the temple before going in himself, so he could run interference if there were any otherworldly intruders. After countless warnings, they never seemed to listen.

_They could ruin everything._

As the Shedim approached, Riku lifted the keyblade and placed it across his chest, not out of any deference to the creature, but rather as a warning. Forming a mental connection with the creature, a disgusting job, Riku reinforced the target as well as adding the further proviso that once done with her, under no circumstances was he to go after the blonde. A slow smile spread on the face of the stygian creature and it headed towards the door of the temple, lifting its arms to blow them open with a powerful gust of wind. Riku scanned the area one more time then followed it in, waiting in the shadows as he watched the scene unfold. He was seriously displeased to find Ash still locked in combat with the groom, but his annoyance quickly disappeared when he saw Tidus fight. Of course, it took hold once again when he saw that Ash was fighting with his left hand. Ash was right handed.

_Some day those stupid games of his are going to kill him, if I don't get there first..._

Of course this didn't reflect on Tidus, very few could hold their own against Ash. The man was good and it was a shame such talent would go to waste. Still, it had to happen. Riku kept close watch on the Shedim for this was the moment of truth, they moment they all found out whether the search would ever end. Emotionlessly, he watched as the Shedim killed the summoner, pulling out the crystallized heart. Riku, Ash, and Jitt all knew very well that it was the darkness in a person's heart that made it vulnerable, that gave the heartless the power to take it. As the Shedim lifted the heart high, they saw that the summoner woman was just as tainted as the rest of them. If she really had been the one, her heart would not have been taken so easily. The heart they sought had to be given, not taken. Riku swore under his breath, barely hearing Tidus's scream, but the other jerked him out of his thoughts. He still had to deal with the girl and as the Shedim started to move towards her, he realized that once again someone was running interference. He ignored Ash and Jitt's conversation as he stepped out of the shadows, making his way quietly over to the girl.

"Riku, where've you been?"

Riku didn't answer and instead kept his eyes on the blonde who was working herself into a rage. _What was she going to do?_ Riku stared at Ash meaningfully, willing him to say nothing else as he finally got within a few feet of her. She began to shout in her bizarre language again and as she began to step forward, Riku used her distraction to knock her over the head. He had learned from his mistakes and if she were unconscious it would make things a whole lot easier especially with the Shedim around. Riku caught her as she began to fall and set her on the floor, before looking over at Ash and Jitt.

"I had some things to attend to." Riku's voice booked no room for further questioning on the matter so of course Ash asked anyway.

"What's with the girl?"

Riku had no intention of telling either of them about what he suspected so he deliberately misinterpreted the question. .

"Angry I would guess."

He smirked at Ash's raised eyebrow and shrugged, giving a motive Ash would understand.

"Too pretty to just kill, might as well let her go quietly along with the rest of the world. Speaking of which..."

Riku walked over to the Shedim and plucked the heart from its hands. Eyes flashing it moved to strike Riku. Tossing the heart over to Jitt, he moved to one side and pulled out the keyblade again. In a smooth gesture, he did a half turn, bringing the blade around to the Shedim's head, knocking it off with the force of the blow. For the second time that night, the blade began to glow. If Ash or Jitt noticed, it would mean trouble so he followed through with the movement letting the keyblade sweep down so he could sheathe it again.

"Get to the gate and deliver the heart. There are still a few things that I have to do on this world. You can say that I will be along shortly."

Ash gave Riku a disturbingly knowing smile and Jitt looked as if he wanted to say something, but both of the men were nervous about the amount of time left. The door they came in was not the only one, they were located all over this world and the dark storm flooded in through each. The shadowy forces were only concentrated on this island, the ultimate goal was not the people, except for the summoner, but the world itself, it's power, it's heart. There was no final blaze of glory, no fight, but a terrible slip into darkness, a star fading out of the nighttime sky. They'd be watching for it. Riku walked over to Tidus as the men walked out, after all the orders had been to kill him; it would be conceivable that he was carrying out some other objective that concerned the man. Once Jitt and Ash had left however, Riku went back to the blonde who was still out cold.

Gently picking her up, he carried her outside and set her down again. He had no intention of using the portal. It would take far too long. Instead he raised his hand up into the air and began to concentrate. A moment later a glyph appeared, the same as the tattoo he had on the back of his neck, the same one that Ash had and Jitt, the curving down M, which was not an M at all. It represented an incomplete heart, the dark heart. The glyph wavered and a portal opened, not to the murky pathways that led between the worlds, but a dirty alley darkened city of another world. Turning Riku picked up the girl again and walked through the portal just a few minutes before the storm thickened and Spira was consumed...


	6. The Sephulchral City

**Author's comments:** Hehe, thanks Kim, your comment was extremely helpful:) (Or will be when I am not to lazy to go back and edit).

Kinda a shortish chapter, but here goes...

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**Chapter Six: The Sepulchral City**

"_I found myself back in the sepulchral city resenting the sight of people hurrying through the streets to filch a little money from each other, to devour their infamous cookery, to gulp their unwholesome beer, to dream their insignificant and silly dreams. Their bearing, which was simply the bearing of commonplace individuals going about their business in the assurance of perfect safety, was offensive to me like the outrageous flauntings of folly in the face of a danger it is unable to comprehend."_

-Joseph Conrad

_Cocytus..._ not its original name, but the one it had grown into. The sepulchral city, a dying world, succumbing to fate with open, but apathetic eyes; not the swift descent like so many of the others, but a painful, lethargic decay. Once brilliant, it was now dirty, worn, and miserable; merely waiting for the day its dull existence would fade forever. Ironically, despite the assurance of its eventual death, the city itself kept growing. A _crossworld_, it became home to the vagabonds, the stragglers, the lost; all of those who were "lucky" enough to have escaped their worlds before the fall. For those who had the means it was but a stop along the way, but most were trapped, the light dying from their eyes as it died from the planet.

The people called themselves the Letha, the forgotten ones, waiting for the day their number was called. They all knew the illusion for what it was. It was hard to ignore the random searches, the frequent_ examples _that were made of its citizens, the disappearances in the night. _The days grew darker still_. It was difficult to distinguish between those victims of the shadow legions and those of the crimes they inflicted on one another.

Values had declined in the once fair city. Death and stress make people do strange things and ultimately all they can do is perpetuate the cycle and much of the population consisted of opportunists and murderers. Exotic artifacts from lost worlds mysteriously appeared in the black markets of Cocytus and those daring enough to cross into the ninth district can find any number of people willing to slit a throat for a few paltry gil. Most though were just trying to get by, prolonging existence, blind to the plight of the new refugees for they fared no better. It was not so much that the numbers of those who survived were great, but that _that_ many worlds had been destroyed.

Though hope was frail, it had not been destroyed. Despite everything, Cocytus _was_ a haven of safety. It was a physical impossibility to keep track of all the inhabitants, _the ideal place to hide someone_.

Riku stepped through the portal and into one of the dingy alleys of the third district. It had been a rich area once and Riku still remembered the look of the white marble, barely graying from the shadowy taint, the world had just begun to die. The high walls of the old fountain area were now a sooty gray, and the bells in the tower that looked out over the city had long since broken. Casting his glance to the sky, he immediately began to look for the one that was flickering in with the final throes of death. Finally finding the weak light, he watched as it flashed once then blinked out. A terrifying sight, but one he was used to. Riku glanced down at the girl he held in his arms. Despite everything she looked almost peaceful, but then he supposed sleep did that to people. He was just relieved that he wouldn't have to deal with the hysterics that would have followed if she had seen and understood the event.

Readjusting his grip, he began to wind his way down the alley, seriously hoping that no one would be stupid enough to bother him as he walked towards the fourth district. He wasn't in the mood to deal with it and the less people that saw him and the girl, the better. Riku didn't want word getting back to _her_. Instead of walking into the main square, he kept to the back streets, entering the fourth district from an old aqueduct instead of one of the four main gates. Two short turns later and just as he was beginning to tire a bit from carrying the girl so far, Riku arrived at his destination.

The house didn't look like much. Though it was the largest on the street, it was also the most rundown; the places in which the paint had once been a vibrant red had turned a musky brown. In Cocytrus, things were made to spoil. Riku walked up to the large wooden door and gently set the girl down as he turned to knock on the door. He needed his arms free in case he had to fight. After a minute or two, the door opened and a girl of about nine with long black chair and large brown eyes stood staring out at him. A startled expression crossed the girl's face and she slammed the door shut. He could hear the sound of her running off and he sighed, waiting a moment before knocking again. This time when the door opened, a man stood there with the look of someone hardened by battle, and cool blue eyes which hardened at the sight of Riku. The girl who had answered the door hid behind the man, peering at Riku with her large owlish eyes. Before saying anything to Riku, the man turned to the girl.

"Rinoa, go see your mother, _now._" The girl looked as if she wanted to protest, but seeing the look on her father's face she scampered away and the man turned to Riku again, placing his arms across his chest.

"What the hell are _you _doing here?" Riku smirked. Not exactly a warm welcome, but better then he expected.

"Hello to you to, Leon." Shaking his head, Leon began to close the door and Riku decided he might as well cut to the chase. "I need you to do something for me."

Leon didn't like that and he glared fiercely at Riku. "Yeah right, why would I do anything for you? You're nothing, but a—"

Riku held up his hand, a faint smile still playing along his face.

"Stop, before you say something you regret."

Walking over Riku picked up the girl bringing her over, watching as Leon's eyes widened. "I need you to take her. Give her a place to say. _Keep her safe._" Leon cast Riku a startled look which quickly turned into suspicion.

"Why, who is she? What happened to her?" Riku shook his head impatiently.

"Look if you won't do it for me, do it for _him... _I don't have time for this now and to be honest, I am not entirely sure... That's partly where you come in. Her world was just consumed."

There was no misunderstanding in who the _he_ was that Riku referred to, though Riku had mostly just thrown it in to remind Leon of the way things were. When Leon looked as if he was going to refuse, Riku continued.

"Just consider her to be another one of _your_ refugees, oh yes I know about them." Very casually Riku drew a symbol into the air, a symbol for fire, and the one on the door that guarded the place where Riku knew that Squall was hiding the ones who were wanted. Riku didn't give a damn about them so he hadn't reported it. The leverage was infinitely more valuable.

"It would be a shame if it were discovered, all your efforts to waste. I'm sure they'd be very interested to meet the man who had arranged it all also. Not a good position for a man with a family... exactly how old is your daughter now anyway?" Riku smiled faintly. He wouldn't actually do any of the things he threatened, had every reason _not to_ actually, but Leon didn't know that and he tight expression on his face confirmed it. Leon sighed looking down at the girl again.

"You really are a bastard... bring her in." Leon moved out of the way so Riku could carry her into the house. Gesturing him to follow, Leon led Riku through the main hall and into a living room. A fire was crackling in the fire place and assorted people of varying ages sat around all turning to look at Riku with suspicion and some with hatred. Leon gestured to the couch.

"You can put her here for now." Riku nodded and set her down, staring down for a moment at her, an inscrutable expression in his pale eyes as he once again tried to figure it out, to put the pieces together.

Looking up to find Leon watching him, he nodded then went to the door withthe other man following him out. Riku walked through the hall and opened the front door,pausing to look Leon.

"Keep an eye on her for anything... out of the ordinary. I'll try to come back some time soon."

Riku began to walk away and Leon started to shut the door when Riku paused turning back to face him.

"None of your people were there tonight, right?" Riku gave the other man a hard look and Leon appeared to be struggling with whether to answer or not. Finally the man shook his head and spoke in a slightly exasperated tone.

"No... that all?" Riku smiled faintly in response.

"Yeah that's it... and Leon, thanks." Riku turned and began to walk down the darkened streets.

_If they weren't there, then what caused the interference?_

With his mind thus occupied. Riku walked towards the eighth district and the portal to Hollow Bastion. He still had to report and only then could rest...


	7. Awakening

**Author's Note: **I did not write the toast in the beginning of the chapter, it is an Irish wedding toast.

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**Chapter Seven : ****_Awakening_**

_Bnyo, cyjeuin (Pray, saviour)_

_Tnays, Lremt uv Bnyoan (Dream, Child of Prayer)_

_Vunajan yht ajan (Forever and ever)_

_Pnehk ic bayla (Bring us peace)_

_- The Hymn of the Fayth_

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"_Friends, in your life I hope you do four things; lie, steal, cheat, and drink. When you lie, do it to save a friend. When you steal, steal someone's heart. When you cheat, cheat death. And when you drink, drink with me!" Everyone smiled as Wakka finished his heartfelt toast. It was a common one at weddings, but very appropriate, especially at this one. Everyone here had done one or another._

_Wakka grinned and drank deeply from his cup then setting the empty glass down on the table with a thunk, he turned to Tidus and slapped him hard across the back, his thick Besaid accent even thicker from the alcohol._

_"Con-grah-dulations, Brudda."_

_Then dropping a swift kiss on Yuna's cheek, Wakka turned to his wife Lulu and plucked his four year old son, Vidina, from her arms and tossing the giggling child once into the air he caught him and swung him around towards Rikku. _

_"You hold him while I dance with my beautiful wife, ya?" Rikku smiled and held out her arms to accept the child._

_"No problem!"_

_Wakka smiled broadly then walked over to Lulu, sweeping aside her protestations and Lulu almost literally off of her feet as they went to dance. It was funny to see how the couple had changed since they got married. Giggling slightly she turned back to Yuna and Tidus to see them moving to dance as well, and Paine and Baralai had already taken off, not to dance, Paine didn't dance. Rikku sighed._

"_Guess it's just you and me Vidina!" She tickled the four year old and began to bounce him on her lap as her mind drifted back to the words of Wakka's toast, feeling inexplicably uneasy despite the happiness of the occasion._

_**When you steal, steal someone's heart...**_

_What was it? What was missing? What was she forgetting? _

_As she sat with Vidina and considered the matter, the roar of the party faded, transforming into random sibilant whispers, like bits of conversation, but she was missing out on all the vital parts..._

"_The heartless... _

_pure of... _

_to unlock..._

_door of light..._

_too late..."_

_In the midst of them all one voice rang out clearly in her mind. "This world has been connected. Tied to the darkness... soon to be completely eclipsed..."_

_"What?!" Rikku shook her head and jumped to her feet as she clutched Vidina. Everyone around her seemed menacing now, their faces twisted into grotesque smiles... she'd seen a smile like that before... but where? Vidina began to scream. And Rikku quickly reached her hand up to his face to try and comfort him._

_"Shhhh, shh, it's ok Vidina... let's go find your mommy." Vidina just screamed louder and all of a sudden there was a loud popping noise and one of the starry lights on the ceiling blinked. Suddenly Rikku realized that Vidina had stopped screaming. As she hugged him closer, her arms hit empty space and she ended up grabbing her own shoulders as Vidina vanished. Rikku released a startled yelp, but no one noticed. Everyone was all smiles and party faces. Rikku ran through the crowd until she finally found Lulu and Wakka._

_"Vidina, he's go—"_

_Lulu cut her off, a hateful glow in her violet eyes and Rikku recoiled, she had never felt such a look._

_"I know Rikku. You failed him." There was another pop as another light blinked out and with it Lulu as well. _

_"I don't understand, what's happening? Wakka?"_

_Wakka just shook his head._

_"Rikku, You shouldna done that!" _

_POP! _

_He was gone.., and the room was darker still. _

"_But I didn't, I didn't do anything..."_

"_Exactly." Rikku looked up to see Paine beside her. "You could have you know."_

_Rikku looked back at her, her eyes welling up with tears._

"_What? What could I have---"_

_POP! Another one gone and Paine with it..._

_Rikku clapped her hands over her ears and shut her eyes tightly, she couldn't take this anymore, but she couldn't block out the voice, the whispering in her mind._

"_You really are a child..."_

_Rikku lifted her head to glare at the person who wasn't there, whose voice sounded so darkly in her head. She hated it in when people called her that._

"_Why are you doing this? What is happening? Why won't you just tell me?!" _

_Once again the strange voice came back, flowing over her as the lights blinked out overhead. What he said next sounded like an oft repeated line._

"_One who knows nothing can understand nothing..."_

_Rikku shook her head in annoyance as the voice began to chuckle..._

"_You will find the answers you seek... just step into the darkness..."_

"_No!" Rikku was a child of the desert, a child of the sun. She would not do as he said._

_Rikku looked around, most of the people had vanished now, were still vanishing as the lights above their head winked out... Gippal, Baralai, Cid... One by one, they disappeared. All that remained were two dwindling lights... Yuna and Tidus. Rikku ran over to them, desperately hoping that they'd have the answers, that they'd be themselves. She nearly sobbed in relief as Yuna gazed at her, a softness to her expression._

"_Yunie?" Yuna smiled and held Tidus's hand in her own. Tidus looked at her, an earnest expression in his gaze._

"_It's not your fault."_

_He turned to look at Yuna and Yuna squeezed his hand tightly before nodding at Rikku._

"_Sing for me...for us..."_

_The lights dimmed as Yuna and Tidus slowly faded away, this time not disappearing, but combining into one. Rikku cast her gaze into the darkness then sat down under the light and turned her eyes up to the faint golden orb. Starting quietly she sang the hymn of the faith, her voice getting stronger with every word as she repeated it over and over, so the voice couldn't penetrate her thoughts._

"_Bnyo, cyjeuin, Tnays, Lremt uv Bnyoan, Vunajan yht ajan, Pnehk ic bayla."_

_She watched the orb and as she sang it got brighter and brighter, a beacon of light quelling the dark. Just before she was completely encompassed by the light, a loud girlish voice cut in—_

"_Locke! What are you doing in here?! You were only supposed to hide downstairs."_

"I know but—"The girl cut him off again.

"Momma said we that we weren't supposed to come in here!"

"But she—"

"I'm gonna go tell Momma."

The boy began to yell know obviously not wanting to get in trouble, but frustrated that he kept getting cut off.

"I KNOW, BUT SHE WAS SINGING!" The girl broke off then began in a voice that was almost as loud as the boy yelling.

"What?! Oh now look what you've done! You've gone and woken her up!!!"

Rikku's eyes slowly flickered open, her blurry sleep-ridden gaze sharpening to see two sets of wide anxious brown eyes staring down at her, all remnants of her dream forgotten. Unfortunately, her mind didn't do her the same courtesy about the events of the evening, and everything that happened came rushing back to her. Rikku blinked back the tears that pricked at her eyes. She couldn't handle it, for now she'd focus on the present situation. She sat up, aware of the unwavering focus of the two children, and gazed around the small room. The wallpaper was faded with a strange pattern of unfamiliar blue flowers and the wooden floor was covered in a purple threadbare rug. A large trunk lay at the end of the bed and a small lamp rested on the bed stand next to her. Her green dress lay folded neatly on the stand, and Rikku looked down at herself, exceedingly embarrassed to find herself dressed in someone's oversized pajamas. Lifting her hand to her forehead she felt a bandage covering her temple. Letting her hand drop, she cast one more quick look around the room. All of the things were recognizable, but foreign. She was certainly not on Besaid Island anymore.

"Where am I?"

The little boy gasped. "She has amleesia!" The girl, obviously his sister, frowned at him, brushing a strand of dark hair from her face.

"It's _amnesia_... and don't be stupid. She was sleeping when she came here, so it's _obvious_ that she wouldn't know where she is. Besides you get amnesia when you can't remember who you are!" The little boy frowned, thinking this over.

"Ohhh..."

The girl turned away from him, an exasperated look on her face which transformed into a look of worry as she studied Rikku.

"You know who you are, don't you?"

Rikku was about to respond when the boy lifted his head, his eyes sparkling.

"I'm Locke, and this is Rinoa! This is my room! Momma said it would be better to put you in here where you'd be out of the way. Dad said ok, but wanted to put a lock on the outside of the door, cause he thought you might be a shadowmaker, but Momma wouldn't let him and called him an overly suppiscious A-S-S. He didn't like that much, no sirree... Are you an angel? Cause you have funny eyes, and you were singing in your sleep and angels sing and you were singing in some weird language. Is that the angel language? Can you teach me?"

Rinoa looked increasingly horrified as Locke continued to chatter away but she also wanted to hear Rikku's answer. The girl wasn't as grown up as she pretended to be. Rikku blinked, overwhelmed. The grogginess hadn't quite faded and she realized she had a splitting headache, no doubt from the blow to her head.

_That son of a shoopuff!_

Once again, Rikku was bordering on dangerous territory so she dropped the thought and forced herself to smile at the pair.

"My name's Rikku. I'm sorry, I'm not an angel, I'm just a girl... but it would be fun to meet one! I don't remember singing, but if I was, it was in Al Bhed."

Rikku's forehead creased at the blank, but eager looks on the children's faces. They didn't seem to have heard of Al Bhed, which was extremely odd. Everyone in Spira at least knew _of_ the Al Bhed, even if most didn't bother to learn the language.

"It's the language of my people... I'd be glad to teach it to you... but maybe _you_ can _help_ me too... What town are we in, I thought I'd been just about everywhere in Spira—"

"Rinoa! Locke! It told you two to stay out of here, and now you've woken her up!" Both children started guiltily and Rikku looked up to see a pretty woman in her late twenties or early thirties. The dark hair and brown eyes were unmistakable. She had to be Locke and Rinoa's mother. The woman smiled at Rikku then walked over to the children, shooing them away from the bed.

"Go on downstairs, dinner's ready." The woman watched with bemusement as the children scampered off then turned back to Rikku. "I'm so sorry they woke you... How _are_ you feeling?"

_How was she feeling? Empty at the moment..._

Rikku shrugged slightly, forcing a smile on her face.

"Oh it's ok, and I am alright also I guess... The worst headache of my life, heh."

Rikku frowned slightly, feeling uncomfortable.

"Um if I may ask... where am I, how did I get here? I don't... remember..."

_Block it out, block it out, block it out..._

The woman's smile faltered, but she steeled herself. This was something she was used to, at least to some extent.

"We're in the city Cocytrus."

Rikku gave her a puzzled look.

"Cocytrus, I've never heard of it and I've been all over Spi—"

A pained look crossed the woman's face and realization dawned in Rikku's eyes.

"I'm not in, I'm not...What... what happened to... You're joking, you have to be..."

The woman shook her head, her eyes sad as she instinctively laid her hand over Rikku's.

"I'm so sorry."

Rikku concentrated on breathing, panic welling up inside of her. A tear trickled slowly down her cheek.

"I think, I think I need to rest some more."

The woman nodded an understanding look in her warm brown eyes.

"You should, I think it will help. It'll be good for that headache also."

The woman squeezed Rikku's hand once then walked to the door turning to look at her.

"If you need anything, don't hesitate to call. I'm Julia."

Rikku nodded, forcing the smile back to her face. "Rikku." Julia's eyes widened at this, but Rikku didn't notice, and as the door was quietly closed, Rikku turned her head in towards the pillow and cried herself to sleep.


	8. Meetings and Games

_Author's Note: _Meh, sorry for the lack of update, hectic week and even though I have plans for the fic, it just wouldn't formulate into anything. Pissed me off rather actually. Here tis the next chapter, I apologize for the title, as always, titles should die. Oh yeah, I never really answered your question JMO, about Cocytus/The Sepulcher City, as it actually is one that I can answer. Like I'm really going to give you all spoilers about what happens next! Basically though you get a cookie for realizing that it was Traverse Town, I was slightly worried that people (who have played it) wouldn't get that. I decided to change the name basically to make it sound more ominous, just an indication of how things have gone downhill/changed yadda ya.

Oooh, and another important note, even though it doesn't affect this chapter. I had originally named a character in chapter 7, Terra, but I ended up changing it to Julia, to leave who those people are more open ended, that probably doesn't make sense, but I am happier with the name now anyway, so meh. Just thought I'd clear that up in case there is any confusion in the chapters to come.

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**Chapter Eight: Meetings and Games**

_They are playing a game they are playing at not playing a game, if I show them that I see they are, I shall break the rules and they will punish me Therefore I must play the game of not seeing that I see the game.  
--RD Laing_

The entrance to Hollow Bastion lay at the top of a bone white tower that loomed over the city. It just appeared there one day about seven years ago as yet another reminder to the doomed city of the power of those who controlled the dark. The tower itself was unguarded. Hollow Bastion was teeming with shadow wraiths and everyone knew it. A person would be considered lucky if they held onto their lives for even a minute after they crossed through that gate. However, none of this concerned Riku as he made his way up the spiraling staircase to the top of the tower. After all, if anyone was stupid enough to enter _that door_ then they deserved what they got.

Reaching the top, Riku paused for a moment, glancing down at the nine districts of Cocytus before pulling a blindfold out of his pocket and tying it securely around his head. That done, he continued forward.

As Riku stepped through the portal, he could feel an immediate change in atmosphere. If Cocytus was dying, Hollow Bastion was already dead. It was a cold soulless citadel in a world of perpetual shadow and ice and a night that knew no end.

Riku didn't have to see his surroundings to know exactly where he had arrived. The sounds of water rushing all around him was answer enough. They echoed in crystalline tones as they poured down into an abyss. Riku himself was on a platform of ice, floating eerily, high above the gap. The clicking of claws on the ice informed him that the shadow wraiths were all around him, but he ignored them as he walked to the other side of the ice, knowing exactly how many steps would take him to the edge.

The wraiths were the reason for the blindfold. The ones at Hollow Bastion were older, darker creatures, simultaneously drawn to and damaged by the odd light shining from Riku's eyes. Only a minor hassle asRiku didn't need his sight. He could sense his surroundings anyway.

Unconsciously, Riku lifted his head towards the top spire of the citadel. It was there that he had been immersed in the light. He had been blind for a full year afterwards and was as good as blind for another year after, cursed to wander in the void between the worlds, but Riku was never one to remain helpless for long. He quickly adapted to the change and if anything became a better fighter for it.

Riku never questioned the fact that he hadn't just been killed outright afterwards. He was more useful to them alive then dead, Riku had once been the true wielder of the keyblade and the only one with any measure of control over the powers of those he carried now.

_That and he wouldn't..._

Smiling faintly, Riku terminated the thought. Finally reaching the far end of the platform, he leapt forward, trusting that the lift was in place. It was so he reached out towards the pedestal in the center and picked up the globe that rested on the top, turning it once before replacing it. After a moment, the lift jerked into motion and the air whipped through Riku's hair as he sped towards the castle gates. The sensation was like flying and perhaps the one thing that Riku actually liked about the place.

Eventually the lift stopped and Riku disembarked at the landing of a long flight of marble stairs. Quickly he made his way to the top, ignoring the flood of shadow fiends around him. They wandered free outside of the citadel, but once inside they came only upon command, but still, once again Riku was struck by their restlessness. They were following him more closely then usual. He could hear their sibilant sounds as they slunk around him and the flapping of leathery wings high in the air as the avian shades scouted the area for fresh blood. Riku had seen them in the full glory of their flight as they swooped down on the unsuspecting, lifting people high in the air and dropping them as they ripped the hearts from their chests, their eyes gleaming as they flew off with the hearts clutched between their sooty talons. They weren't neat and tidy like with the Shedim's work on the summoner, but rather pure violence... not the heart shaped crystal pulled from the soul, but the blood and pain and utter earthiness of the still pulsing organs. In both cases, a heart was irretrievably taken, but with the crystal, it could be used after the death of its _donor_.

_Speaking of which..._

Walking through the gates, he entered a side door to the courtyard, leaving the vast majority of the shadow wraiths behind him, the noise of the bubbling fountain, replacing that of the babbling fiends. _And something else..._

Riku felt the shifting in the air currents right before he saw the flicker in his mind and as the sword whizzed towards him, he ducked and slid past, jerking his elbow hard into the man's back. The man grunted, whirling around, and Riku continued with the momentum, smoothly turning to face his attacker, a faint smile appearing on his handsome face.

"Clumsy... very clumsy." As the man released an annoyed grunt, he charged and Riku moved, waiting until the last second to bring the flat of his blade down to whip him in the back again forcing the other man to stumble. The match was ridiculously one sided so Riku decided to end it, resting his sword at the man's throat before he could make another move.

"Drop it, Donnel. What the hell are you doing attacking with a sword anyway? Stick with the sorcery; it's what you're good at." Riku smirked. "Then you might at least stand _some_ chance." At first Riku thought the lack or response was due to the fact that Donnel was angry, but as he felt another flicker behind him, he realized that he was just waiting for the second attacker to move. Riku spun, moving the keyblade in his right hand up and around, stopping the other man in his tracks as he brought the one in his left back down to cover Donnel.

"You too." A moment later the clatter of metal on marble could be heard as the man quite wisely dropped his sword.

The sound of chuckling and soft clapping filled the courtyard and Riku stiffened slightly.

_I should have known..._

"How _do_ you do it? How did you know he was there?"

Riku shrugged, having no intention of giving the answer. Truth was that when he gained his sight back, he also got something more, the ability to sense auras. A useful ability, but one he had to concentrate on to fully use, and when he went blind folded, he made sure to be very aware of what was going on around him. Still there was no reason for _her _to know.

"It was obvious," Continuing on in a bored tone, he tilted his head towards her. "is your little game over now?" Riku could practically hear the sly smile in the woman's voice as she responded, her tone coy.

"Perhaps..."

Hiding his annoyance, he pushed the keyblade into the throat of the man still standing, causing him to yelp.

"You don't like this one much do you?"

The man began to blubber and wave his arms about as once more, laughter broke out once more. Both Riku and the woman ignored the man. The threat wasn't entirely idle, but she wouldn't have given a damn anyway. Still, after a moment she acquiesced.

"Oh you're no fun, but fine, no more games, I promise... for _now_ anyway. You can release them."

Nodding Riku sheathed the keyblades and smirking he reached out a hand to help the surely sorcerer to his feet.

"I got it!" The man snapped at him, a glare in his voice. Donnel always did have a problem with losing and Riku had really only offered the hand to piss him off, but enough was enough.

"Did Ash and Jitt make it?"

Donnel hesitated for a moment and Riku wondered if it was to check for confirmation that he could respond. The man's tone was malicious, when he did.

"Yeah they got here an hour ago. Like _you _were supposed—"

"Riku, come walk with me." Riku turned as the conversation was interruptedbefore leaving Donnel standing there as he went over to her, absolute accuracy in his approach.

_Might as well get it over with._

They both began to walk, and Riku began in a blank conversational tone.

"So, you have the summoner's heart." Riku paused, she had stopped walking.

"Riku, the wraiths aren't around, why don't you take off the blindfold, so I can see your handsome face."

Riku shook his head, a faint smile on his face, despite his annoyance. This was typical. "No point. I'm leaving again after we take care of business... Besides, it's comfortable."

Riku felt her move and quickly caught her wrist, not even liking that much contact, as she tried to remove the blindfold.

"I said, I'll _leave it_." His voice betrayed nothing, but the emphasis on the last two words was clear enough. He dropped the hand as if it were a venomous snake, which actually wasn't that far off, and her tone betrayed her petulance.

"Oh fine... So stubborn... to business then... the heart was _not _the right one, but you knew that. I'm terribly disappointed. We all are. You sure it's the summoner's? It wasn't what was sensed."

"She was impossible to miss. If hers wasn't the one you wanted, that's your problem, and what, you doubt your own brother now?"

"Jitt's a good little boy, of course I do. Told me something very interesting actually... something about some girl? A pretty little thing to hear Ash talk. Just exactly, _why _is it that you were so late? _I _didn't give you any orders about remaining behind."

Riku remained unruffled, despite the fact that the questioning was a little too pointed. He knew how to handle it.

"That's right, _you_ didn't."

This shut her up, but not for long. Still, it directed the conversation elsewhere, just as Riku wanted.

"I don't give a damn what the hold up is, I expect you to return promptly. Since you only brought a useless heart, you'll keep searching."

"Obviously." Riku replied in a dry tone, which only angered her more, but she wasn't a mistress of Hollow Bastion for nothing, and she quickly controlled it. "Are we done here? Is he around?"

"He won't see you today. He was awfully disappointed with your failure; it's made him physically ill." Her tone was nasty and the lie wasn't even meant to be believable. Riku barely refrained from rolling his eyes, though with the blindfold, it wouldn't have mattered much anyway.

"Well then I'm done here." Riku turned and strode toward the exit, cocking his head slightly as he heard her call after him.

"One week Riku, unless you get a message... and don't think I didn't notice about that change of subject." Riku kept walking...

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She watched him go with a slight frown marring her pretty face. He was too damn difficult to manipulate. After a moment though, the frown cleared only to be replaced by a devious smirk. 

_Not impossible though_...

Riku _had_ told her something, just by refusing to mention it. _Unless he really did get other orders..._ She knew she'd have to ask and the thought infuriated her. It put her in a bad position. Either she was for some reason being left out of the loop or she'd risk showing incompetence by her inability to keep tabs on Riku. She was quite immune, but it was the principle of the thing.

"Donnel, go get Jitt and tell him to come to find me. I'll be in my study." The sorcerer nodded and dashed off, and after a moment she departed as well.

Exiting the courtyard, she headed towards the east wing and her lavish suite. Sitting down at the desk in her study, she thought for a moment and then began to compose a letter. Jitt came in just as she finished and she met his arrival with a bright smile, nodding for him to take a seat.

Though Jitt was actually the older of the two siblings, he also possessed a more submissive personality, leaving her to take charge even to the point of turning him into her errand boy. Though this _was_ important and she couldn't trust it to anyone else.

"I need you to deliver this for me." Jitt took it scanning the envelope quickly, looking up with a questioning look in his eyes.

"Cocytus!"

She smiled wickedly and gave him a slight nod.

"Perfect, isn't it?"

After a moment, Jitt smiled as well. "It certainly explains a lot."

"Indeed... I need it done tonight. The sooner he reads it, the better... Now before you go, tell me again what happened with this girl." The behavior was extremely atypical of Riku, but eventually she'd find out what was going on in that head of his. She always did.


	9. Explanations

**Author's Note:** Thank you guys for reviewing, I hope you guys will keep it up, not because I will stop writing, but because it is nice to have feed back and makes me happy! :)

Anyway, the quotes are getting more whimsical and probably less fitting, but they make some sense in my strange and twisted mind anyway so feedle dee dee! I am sorry for the continuing chapters explaining stuff rather then action etc, but there is nothing too too extraneous I trust.

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**Chapter Nine: Explanations**

_All that is gold does not glitter,__  
__Not all those who wander are lost.__  
__The old that is strong does not wither,__  
__Deep roots are not reached by the frost.__  
__From the ashes a fire shall be woken,__  
__A light from the shadows shall spring.__  
__Renewed shall be blade that was broken,__  
__The crownless again shall be king._

_-J.R.R. Tolkien, an Al Bhed author, of course._

Rikku flinched and opened her eyes, immediately raising her hand to block out the dusty sunlight that filtered in through the faded curtains. She puzzled at it for a moment. The light was an odd color and it was impossible for her to tell what time it was.

_How long have I been sleeping?_

Thankfully she had not dreamed, but remained blissfully unaware. Sadly, this was no longer the case; though this time she had no confusion about where she was or rather where she wasn't, and no immediate feeling of suffering. She felt... _distanced_... but also wide awake.

Sitting up with a frown, she threw off the covers and climbed out of the bed, gingerly setting her bare feet onto the hard floor. Physically, she felt much better then she had before. Now she just wanted to find that woman Julia and hopefully get some answers. Looking down at the large nightshirt she wore, Rikku briefly wondered if she should change back into the green dress so she'd at least be wearing proper clothes, but she quickly discarded the idea. The thought made her sick, as if dark karma clung to it now. Besides, she'd be lying if she claimed that she hadn't worn skimpier outfits, _a lot skimpier._ No, this would be fine. She was actually astonished with herself for even caring about such a comparatively trivial thing.

_Crazy..._

Fixing a determined expression on her face, Rikku opened the door and poked her head out into the hall. Finding it clear, she stepped out, looking around in both directions. It was in much the same state as the room she just left; musty, gray, depressing, and also painfully silent. Three other doorways lay to her left, but Rikku wasn't about to go exploring in the bedrooms of someone else's house so instead she headed for the stairs, hoping that she'd find Julia or those kids below.

She continued to absorb her surroundings as she walked down the steps. There was something odd about this place that she couldn't quite put her finger on. Reaching the landing, she found that the living room area was empty as well. The door to her left looked like it might lead into a kitchen so Rikku went there, wondering if this place did in fact have inhabitants or if she had just imagined Julia, Rinoa, and Locke. It was bad enough waking up in an unknown place, but to wake up alone and abandoned in some creepy old house after everything that had happened... Shaking her head, she pushed the door open, almost startled when she actually did find someone on the other side.

The man jerked his head up, fixing her with a dark stare as he casually concealed the papers he was writing on. They both took a moment to assess one another before either of them spoke. The man was striking with sable brown hair and stormy dark blue eyes that were almost violet, but perhaps the most striking thing about him was the scar that ran between his eyes and across the bridge of his nose, clearly made by some sort of blade.

"Uh... hi." Rikku said, most intelligently. The man leaned back in his chair, continuing with his assessment, clearly seeing something about her that he didn't like.

"So you're awake."

_Why yes, yes I am... and aren't you the observant one..._

The look he gave made her testy. It reminded her all too much of the way she had seen so many Yevonites treat the Al Bhed, scorning them for their mere existence. After all she was the one who was knocked out and brought here, not the other way around. Why should _he_ be viewing _her_ with such mistrust? She guessed that he must be Rinoa and Locke's father, the one who had wanted to lock her in that room. It was just rude and well... _mean_. Rikku held her tongue in check though. She needed to find out more about where she was... about what happened and she didn't think the best way would be to bitch at her _host_.

"Um yeah..." Rikku hesitated and there was a moment of awkward silence before the questions came pouring out of her. "How did I get here? What happened to Spira? What is this place? Who _are_ you?!"

The man looked calmly back at her then responded to the last one. "I could ask you the same thing... Spira... that was your world?"

Rikku nodded slowly looking down at the ground. "_Was my world..._" Abruptly she jerked her head up, eyes blazing at him. "What the heck happened to it?! What were those, those things... they... killed everyone. Everyone I love is dead!" Rikku laughed, slightly hysterical. "Everyone I hate is dead!" That made her pause, it wasn't entirely true... she certainly hated the ones who had done this, and she had no doubt in her mind that they were very much alive. "I don't even know why _I_ _am not_ dead..." She ended this last bit with a shrill tone in her voice.

_So much for remaining calm._

For a moment she thought she saw a flicker of sympathy in the man's eyes, but then it was gone, replaced by a hard look as he got up from the table and approached, his arms crossed as he glared down at her... and an absolutely _ginormous_ sword at his side. He was quite clearly trying to intimidate her, but she had no idea why.

"That's what I want to know... Awfully _lucky_ aren't you, very _convenient _that you yourself were the only one to make it out. That you were saved." Rikku couldn't believe what she was hearing and grew more upset with each word that he spoke. She glared up at him angrily, waving her arms wildly as she answered back.

"Look you big jerk, I don't know what happened. I was unconscious, nooo memory of how I got here! Last thing I do remember is seeing my cousin violently murdered by some big creepy black fiend and one of my best friends get cut down by some psycho when he tried to help her. Then I got whacked over the head, lights out, and _that's it_! Believe me. I would have much preferred to die instead of Yunie..."

Then much to her embarrassment, she burst into tears. Still she was gratified to see a slightly regretful and completely helpless look on his face. At that moment, Julia burst into the room and immediately assessing the situation,andhaving seen Rikku's tears, she scowled and gave the man a reproachful look.

"What _is_ going on here?! Are you alright? Why don't you sit down and I'll make some tea..."

Julian gently led Rikku over to the chair and immediately began bustling about, putting water in the kettle and pulling out cups. Then turning to Rikku with a smile, she grabbed the man's hand and headed for the living room.

"Excuse me. I need to talk to Leon. It will only be a moment." Rikku watched as she dragged him out and after a quiet moment, brushing away her tears and listening to Julia's voice as it rose an anger and the words of her rant became clear.

"I didn't realize I'd married such a bully. She's obviously been through a lot; I cannot believe you were provoking her like that, making her cry. She's still injured Leon!"

Leon didn't shout back, so Rikku did not get to here his part of the conversation, but soon enough Julia began again

"I don't care _who_ brought her here! You cannot tell me she is not a victim in the situation... This isn't so different. She's just another one that needs help... If Mikael had given the order to—"

Leon broke in again, obviously telling Julia to keep her voice down, because she quieted and Rikku could not hear the remainder of the conversation. When the pair returned, Leon no longer appeared so hostile, but neither did he look happy about the situation. Rikku glared stubbornly at him as he moved in front of her and grudgingly held out his hand in apology.

"I'm sorry. You can't be too trusting around here if you want to survive and we have more cause to be suspicious then most... I just don't want to put my family into jeopardy, which is always what happens when _he's_ involved and when he brought you here. I thought you were a spy." Rikku frowned, confused. She had absolutely no idea what Leon was talking about.

"Who brought me here?"

Julia walked over setting down a cup of steaming tea in front of her, answering.

"Riku." Rikku turned to look at her, wondering what she wanted.

"Yes?"

Julia smirked and even Leon wasn't able to keep a straight face. The idea of Riku and the little blonde girl having essentially the same name was just too funny. Rikku frowned as she looked back and forth between the pair.

"What are you smiling at? Julia just shook her head.

"That's his name. Riku. Two nights ago he dropped you off." It clicked. The silver haired man, he had warned her and then he had knocked her out and brought her here, leaving Spira to die... _Riku._ The name fit somehow, despite the irony of it.

"Ok... but why? Who is he? He warned me about..." Rikku shook her head impatiently. "Can you please explain to me what happened to Spira and what those things were?" Leon nodded slightly as he took a seat at the table again.

"I can't claim to know why he did get you off the world, but he probably brought you here because we help people like you, people whose worlds have been lost." Seeing the still confused expression on her face, he continued to explain. "The wraiths, the shadow beings... They're called the _Heartless_, creatures of pure darkness. They move from world to world and steal the heart of it, its life essence, and then the world dies. Sometimes the process is quick, sometimes slow. They're under the control of...let's just say some bad people, at Hollow Bastion. Riku works for those people, thus the mistrust... but I owed him, so here you are."

Rikku shook that aside for now and stared at him in disbelief. "But why do they do it?"

_And why'd he save me..._

Leon simply shrugged. No one really knew the answer. "Desire for destruction, power... they're looking for something."

Rikku's gaze took on a determined focus. "Well it's got to stop. They can't just get away with this!"

_And I will have my vengeance._

"They already have, best thing you can do now is try to get over it. Live what life you have left. Cocytus is dying, slowly but surely, but it's all there is. No world is safe." Rikku threw him a disgusted look. _Just do nothing?!_ Before she could speak though, Julia stood up.

"Rikku, I am sure you'd like some real clothes. I believe there's some in the attic that would fit you. I had a friend... she was just a little taller, the clothes will do nicely if we can find it."

Rikku was curious, but by way Julia talked, Rikku knew that whoever her friend was, she was dead now and Rikku didn't want to hurt her with questions.

"Come on Leon, you can help us look also and explain to Rikku about the order of things here in Cocytus."

So as they all headed up the stairs and to the attic, Leon gave Rikku a rough overview of the districts of the city, the nine rings, making sure she understood which areas to avoid. Basically, if she went past the fifth district, she'd be in trouble, though none of the sectors could be deemed as very safe. As he continued to drone on, they all began to search around the attic. Hollow Bastion and the heartless seemed to be an off limits topic for now, but she'd find out more... later. For now though, she'd focus on the task at hand. Search for the clothes.

The attic was cluttered with a random assortment of boxes and old furniture. It had the same musty old feel as the rest of the house, but was even worse. Rikku walked around, trying to see in the dim room, there was only one window and the lights didn't work. No one seemed inclined to get a lamp, so Rikku made do. As she surveyed the room though, she began to notice something strange. At first it was just a flicker and Rikku thought that she had just imagined it, but then it happened again, longer this time. Holding still, she waited and the glow came once more, this time not diminishing. Following it to the source, she found a big old clothing trunk, with and odd light seeping out of the sides.

"_What in the farplane...?"_ Rikku moved forward almost as if she were drawn to whatever lay inside the chest. Opening it she saw that it had the clothes that they were looking for, but that wasn't what interested her. Lying just under a yellow dress at the top of the chest was a sword, the same type that the man who had killed Tidus had wielded. The same type as Riku's. Strikingly similar actually. Reaching down, she picked it up, absent mindedly calling to Julia and Leon.

"I found the clothes... and something else." The pair came out from behind the stacks they were looking in and as Leon saw the keyblade he turned to Julia, an appalled expression on his face. "That's what you call _safe keeping_?!"

Julia frowned at him. "Well and why not? I was sure that no one would—" Julia broke off as Leon rested his hand on her arm nodding at her to look over at the girl. Rikku herself was looking down, the blonde hair cascading down her back, and the oversized nightshirt hanging to her knees. She looked like a child, staring down in wonder at the keyblade in her hands as the object itself glowed softly, quelling the dusty darkness of the attic.

Julia glanced at Leon. "Well that's new."


	10. Honor Amongst Thieves

**Author's Note**: Okay... I suck, I suck a lot... I haven't updated in months and after such wonderful reviews too, you are all marvelous... well except for the person sharpening the knife... that was creepy. Anywaaaay, my apologies, apparently senioritis does not just mean that you don't have the will to do work, it means that you don't have the will to do anything... but I've finished all that up and amback in my writing mood and I have every intention of finishing my story (though I am alternating witha hp fic which I have been planning for a while). Anyway, this chapter is like three times the length of the other chapters so maybe that makes up for my slackitosity?

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**_Chapter Ten: Honor Amongst Thieves_**

"_There **is** no honor amongst thieves."_

_- _An anonymous Yevonite who was just robbed.

Rikku hummed softly to herself, her blonde braids swinging and a faint smile playing across her face as she stepped lightly down the stairs. She was by no means at peace with all that had happened, but habit had kicked in and she was no longer weepy and was now able to maintain at least some semblance of her normal perky self. She could admit it, this largely had to do with the clothes, having scrounged around in the trunk, mixed and matched. She was now decked out in an outfit akin to what she'd normally wear. She didn't feel so lost, she felt like herself again. Rikku was incredibly tempted to burn the dress, but it would have been a waste, something the Al Bhed didn't do, they found a use for everything, and besides, it was the only thing she had left of Spira.

After the whole shining sword in the clothing trunk incident, Rikku had once again been left alone while Julia and Leon went off to discuss, but not after Leon had taken the intriguing blade away from her. Rikku was getting completely sick of it. She wanted answers, she _deserved_ them, but instead they deliberately evaded her questions, leaving her in the dark. There was something different about those swords, it had to be more then coincidence that the strangers who had come to Besaid all had one. Rikku had certainly never seen anything like them on Spira. When Julia and Leon left the room, Rikku felt justified in following them and listening in. If they weren't going to talk to her, she'd have to take action herself. Unfortunately, however old and dirty the walls, they still managed to muffle the sound quite well and Rikku was only able to catch the occasional word or two and nothing that was particularly illuminating. Furthermore since Leon and Julia knew exactly what they were talking about; their conversation was not intending to be helpful for someone listening in, so it was likely she would have found it confusing anyway. The one useful thing Rikku did hear was a new name, _Sora_, and the way Leon said it, it sounded important. Was the blade his? She also heard the pair mention Mikael again and at the mention Rikku had strained forward pressing her ear up against the door to have it open on her and she fell forward at their feet. She supposed she'd been a little too noisy.

_And you call yourself a thief..._

Actually she didn't or rather it was only when necessary… or when it was a bad guy… or the situation was just too tempting… she always apologized afterwards… and returned the items… _except that one time…_ _fine twice!_ Her conscience was such a nag. Anyway, Rikku _was_ skilled in the art of sneaking around and for her to blunder so badly, it made an embarrassing situation even more so. However, it also made her angry as she wouldn't have had to sneak if they'd just tell her already. Climbing to her feet she crossed her arms and met Leon and Julia's gazes with a baleful glare, cutting Leon off as he was about to speak.

"I am _not_ a spy, I don't even know who I'd be spying for, and I'm _not_ a child. I deserve to know what is going on and I am getting sick of you running off every five minutes to go whisper about something that clearly does affect me! So can you please for once just explain!"

Rikku almost stamped her foot, but she managed to refrain seeing how childish that would be. It would totally negate what she said. Rikku knew she looked young, but shoopuff, she was twenty-one years old and had been completely independent since she was fifteen... well almost. Still she had helped defeat Sin and Vegnagun and dealt with a whole lot of nasty people in between.

_All that just to find out it was all for nothing…_

Point was, whatever it was, she could handle it, _was _handling it, and if _they_ still didn't trust her well then she could just get the farplane out of there because this was seriously getting irritating and Rikku told them so. Still, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of fear at the thought. She wasn't on Spira anymore. She _had_ no where to go, but she tried to think positively anyway. After all, hadn't she always loved exploring new places? _Right._

Rikku kept up her defiant stance and after a moment of silence Julia sighed and Leon nodded curtly at her. Then Julia began to speak and it was not what Rikku wanted to hear, but there was the promise of more so she put up with it.

"Rikku, we don't think that you are a spy, but we can't discuss this now. I promise that you will learn everything you need to know, but now just isn't the time. Can you please be patient just a little while longer?"

Rikku sighed; she knew that expression. I was the same look Yunie gave her whenever she was pleading with her to do something, or more likely, _not _do it. Rikku never could resist it and she found she couldn't argue now either. Then Julia had proclaimed Rikku to be over tired and led her downstairs and practically shoved a cup of tea in her hands to take back to her room with her and once there she lay down and quickly fell asleep. If Rikku were the suspicious sort, she would have said that Julia had drugged her, but as it was she figured she was just tired from the whole ordeal.

The next day, Rikku was put on room arrest. It wasn't explicitly stated, but when she tried to leave the room she was immediately sent back saying that she looked over tired. The second time she was given another cup of tea, Julia's solution to everything, which Rikku promptly and quite wisely threw out the window when she got back to her room. After that she stayed in there. It wasn't horrible, Rikku needed to think and after a while Rinoa and Locke came in to see her and to bring her food which she scarcely touched. She garnered from them that there was some sort of meeting going on, but all she could do was seethe. In order to distract herself, she spent the next few hours teaching the two children Al Bhed which they picked up rather quickly and by the time the faded gray sun had set, Julia came to see her and offered Rikku a reprieve from the monotony of the room.

"How would you like to go to the market tomorrow? You can see a little of the city and I am sure you need a few things. One of the neighbors, a nice girl named Cecily, baby-sits for the children and takes them out to the market. They'd love it if you would come. It's better that you go out with someone then on your own and tomorrow I have other things to attend to." Rikku didn't even care that Julia was still being secretive; she just jumped at the chance just to get _out_ and that was what she was doing now.

Reaching the second to last step, she hopped cheerfully to the ground, and walked through the living room and pushed open the door to the kitchen.

"Good morning!"

Leon was sitting at the table eating toast and Julia, as usual, was making tea. Rikku thought that the mere action of making it calmed her. Leon looked up at Rikku's greeting and seeing her, he immediately began to choke on his toast. Julia turned also, her eyes widening as she caught sight of her, but she quickly turned and shoved a cup of tea into Leon's hand which he promptly gulped down a strange look appearing on his face., but he stopped choking.

"Damn it! That's scalding!"

Julia suppressed a smirk then fixed him with a no-nonsense look.

"I guess I should have just let you choke then." Leon rolled his eyes and Julia turned back to Rikku who had watched the scene with puzzled amusement.

"Well Selphie never did wear the clothes quite that way, umm."

Julia turned back around and continued with what she was doing, but Rikku was just able to catch what she had muttered under her breath. "Hope it won't be a problem if you stand out…"

Rikku looked down at herself and shrugged. It was similar enough to what she wore back home and no one ever seemed to notice or care then. She'd put it down to cultural, er,_ worldly_ differences.

"Why don't you take a seat? Leon and I have to be going, but Cecily will be along shortly and then hopefully the kids will come out of wherever it is their hiding. Oh and before I forget, here's some money for the market. I'm sure you'll need a few things."

Before Rikku could make any sort of response, Julia waved off any protest.

"Consider it babysitting money because Rinoa and Locke are going with you."

As Julia spoke, Leon stood up and headed towards the door, giving Rikku a stoic nod now that he had recovered. Julia flashed Rikku a brief smile before following him out the door.

"Help yourself to anything in the kitchen!"

Then they were gone. Rikku stood up again and began to potter around in search of breakfast when the door opened. Expecting it to be Julia and Leon, she turned.

"Did you forget somethi—" Rikku broke off as a girl walked through the door. She was perhaps two or three years older than Rikku, pretty with shoulder length chestnut curls and wide golden brown eyes, but prettiness diminished as they narrowed, the look of displeasure. Rikku just smiled back.

"You must be Cecily?"

The girl's gaze flickered towards the living room door and without answering she walked over and called for the kids.

"Rinoa, Locke! Ready to go? We're leaving!"

When Cecily turned back around, the look of distaste was still plastered to her face.

"And you're Rikku." There was no question in the other girl's voice and no warmth either. Rikku just nodded and Cecily continued. "I must say, I don't see what the big fuss is about, can't just be the clothes."

The last bit Cecily muttered under her breathe and Rikku's smile finally dropped and she shook her head slightly.

"I have no idea what you are---"

Cecily just rolled her eyes and waving her hand, she brushed the comment away.

"Whatever… Rinoa, Locke, _now!" _At her second call, the two children finally came running into the kitchen and by the way greeted Cecily; Rikku could tell that she was someone they were very fond of. Quickly though, the two children had latched themselves onto Rikku's arms and pulled her on out the door.

Rikku looked curiously around the alley, eager to get a sense of her surroundings. This was the first time she had been outside in this world, her arrival didn't count. While she had spent ample time looking out the window, it only afforded her a look at the wall of the house next door. The window to the house, instead of occasionally providing a glimpse of the neighbors was permanently closed with the gray curtains drawn. Rikku didn't have much time to study the area though because the children and Cecily were eager to press on to the market, leaving no time to linger. Each time she paused, either Rinoa or Locke would grab her arm and pull her on into some new area.

The sun was just as weak as it had been all the times she had looked out the window, as far from the Bikanel sun as could be. Still, Rikku was happy enough just to be outside, absorbing her surroundings cheerfully as she walked along, though this too faded with each crumbling building she passed. Rikku was used to searching ruins, loved them, but those were ancient, these were just wrecks. _Cocytus_ _is dying…_ Rikku didn't really know what Leon had meant before, but she got some inkling now… and Spira according to everyone she'd talked to was already gone. She'd find out why though; she had to.

Eventually, the kids grew tired of her lagging and ran a little ways ahead, their chatter fading away, leaving Cecily and Rikku alone in silence. Rikku however, wasn't one to remain silent long, even when faced with Cecily's occasional glower.

"Soooo… are you originally from Cocytus?" Rikku gave her a polite smile, but the question sounded better in her head. Was anyone originally from this place? Leon had never said. _Though, it's here isn't it? Maybe that's answer enough._

Cecily flicked a cold glance at her and shook her head.

"No."

"Oh…" For a moment, Rikku thought that would be all, which surprised her, because Cecily didn't seem like a naturally reticent person. At least no more then she herself was, and after a moment, Rikku was proven right in this assessment as the girl continued.

"I've been here for seven years. We jumped through the portal before the world was consumed and wound up here. My parents died shortly after of their wounds the heartless inflicted and it was no small effort to make it through that door before it shut. I certainly wasn't brought, sleeping like a baby, so if you expect to be coddled, don't expect it from me.

Rikku narrowed her eyes stopping completely as she glared angrily at Cecily.

"Hey! That's not fair, you know?"

Cecily just tossed her chestnut curls and crossed her arms meeting Rikku's gaze steadily...

"No, you know what _isn't _fair? That you missed it, while everyone else had to suffer and go through the pain of seeing their worlds die and let's just say the circumstances were more then a little suspicious."

Rikku scowled. Back to that _again!_ It was like she was being forced to listen to a sphere on repeat, the same things over and over _and over_. Besides, what kind of person blamed someone because they didn't witness their world's destruction? These people were worse than Yevonites. Though she supposed if the circumstances weren't so dire, then maybe she would have been flattered. Despite the things Rikku had helped accomplish, no one had ever taken her very seriously before. At least these people were doing that… kinda sorta. _No_, she decided, _it's still annoying. _

"Believe me; if I got to choose which world to go to when mine died which incidentally, I only have you and the others as apparent proof… I would have chosen somewhere where the people were more… _more friendly_!"

Not the most vicious of statements, but true enough. Cecily narrowed her eyes in disdain.

"It is hard to believe that someone so stupid could be a spy." Rikku resisted the urge to scream. All of the mistrust was extremely frustrating.

"If I really was a spy then do you really think the best thing to do would be to accuse _me_? Then I'd really know you were up to something. I have no idea what is going on, I don't even know who you think I'm spying for, not really. So, you could at least have the decency to tell me who you think I am spying for!" Leon had told her "the people at Hollow Bastion," but she had no idea who or where that was. It was just a meaningless name to her.

"Them." Cecily pointed and Rikku followed it with her gaze for the first time noticing the tall tower rising above the other buildings of Cocytus. There was something about the white spire that was distinctly disturbing, though she couldn't say what it was exactly. There were buildings not completely unlike it in Bevelle, but when she looked at this one; her mind conjured up images of bones and death. It had a…_quality_. "That's how they come in. There's a portal at the top that's always open."

Rikku turned back to look at her.

"They?" Rikku was fairly certain she knew what Cecily was talking about, but she figured she might as well see if everyone repeated the same thing to her or if Julia and Leon had been lying.

"The heartless." She confirmed. "When the triumvirate appears, you know a world is doomed." Cecily gave Rikku a bitter smile. "All but this one. Not yet anyway."

"Triumvirate?"

"Ash, Axel, and Riku. " Cecily shrugged. Once Rikku got her talking, she didn't need much prompting to continue. "Generals, mages, assassins… It's hard to say exactly what they do. I guess emissaries to Hollow Bastion is most appropriate. _They can control the heartless._"

Anger bubbled up inside her at the other girl's words. She'd known they were evil. She had seen how the one had so cruelly killed Tidus, but that they led them to Spira... were responsible for its destruction… Not just with Spira, but other worlds as well… It was unfathomable to her. It was so much worse then Sin, than Vegnagun. True they weren't the ones who orchestrated it all, but it gave her something to focus on.

"Who are they though, where did they come from!"

Cecily sighed huffily, but pressed on.

"Ash is a mercenary and a traitor to his own world. Maybe his easiness to kill without remorse got _their_ attention. He found another way to survive the destruction of the world and took it." Cecily smiled viciously. "He has a place in the seventh district. Is that where you go to report?" She didn't expect a response and Rikku wouldn't deign to give her one. "Axel… can't really say I know much about… except that his real name is Jitt. His nickname Axel somehow relates to the way he fights. I dunno why exactly.

"And then there is Riku… a whole lot of back story there, but I'm certainly not going to be the one to tell it." Cecily took on a thoughtful expression. "I don't know if he is the best of the lot or the worst, but I am inclined to go with worst. He's certainly the most deadly anyway, and he knows things… A cold bastard, that one." Cecily narrowed her eyes at Rikku, clearly back to the whole spy thing again. Rikku shrugged defensively.

"Look if I were a spy, why would Julia and Leon have taken me in the first place?" Cecily gave her a dark look.

"Well Riku didn't give them much of a choice now did he? Though frankly, I still have no idea why they'd bother with you."

"But if he is working for—" Cecily cut her off.

"He _obviously_ has something over Leon's head. Besides, Leon always was a big softie, can't turn anyone away." Rikku gave Cecily an incredulous look. Were they thinking about the same Leon here? Noting Rikku's expression, Cecily glowered.

"Don't think you know them because you've spent a few days there. Leon was the one who found us and took us in after the heartless came to my world. When it comes down to it, both of them will do what they have to do, but Leon has always been more sympathetic. If it had been anyone else, you'd have been sent away or most likely killed. We aren't very trusting here in Cocytus." Rikku was left in no doubt as to what Cecily would have done if Riku had brought her here instead, but her scowl was mostly for the hypocritical nature of her remarks.

"And don't assume that you know me!" Cecily was about to respond, but the loud sound of childish laughter rang through the air cutting her off and both girls turned to see the two kids racing down the streets.

"Rinoa! Locke! Don't you dare turn that corner!" And with that, the conversation ceased as both women hurried to catch up to the two children and after a few minutes, they had all arrived at the market.

Rikku had spent quite a bit of time in the Al Bhed markets on Bikanel Island (those after Sin was defeated). The Al Bhed were extremely savvy with their business practices and with their use of machine, they had a monopoly when it came to hunting down and selling old treasures and machina. Anyone looking for a rare object would know to come to Bikanel, though really they had everything and all sorts of people showed up on market days. Still none of this prepared her for the market in Cocytus.

The feeling of homesickness that came with thoughts of the Al Bhed diminished as her gaze was drawn by all of the activity. There were a few different intelligent on Spira aside from humans; the Guado, the Ronso, the Hypello, and Riku supposed to someone who didn't know of them, might take them for fiends, and that is exactly what first crossed her mind as she saw some of those who inhabited the market. On closer examination though, some of the scarier looking ones seemed to be involved in the normal market activities. Neither Cecily nor the kids seemed surprised though, so Rikku just shrugged and followed them into the crowds. At least it was something interesting to look at.

As they neared the center of the market, each woman with a hand on a child, Cecily turned to Rikku.

"I'm sure you want some time to look around and buy what you need. How about we meet back in two hours? I'll children with me, so they don't bother you while you look. Don't worry, you should be fairly safe in the market, if you don't behave too stupidly."

Both children frowned up at Cecily. "But I wanna go with Rikku!" Locke pouted. Rinoa looked like she wanted to argue as well, but thought better of it. Rikku smiled down at them.

"I don't mind them coming along."

"NO!" Glancing at the children, the Cecily felt need for explanation for her near shout. "She'll be busy and you guys hate shopping. I know you two just come to run around and besides, if you come with me, I bet we can get Anita to give you each a cookie." Still slightly taken aback by Cecily's emphatic response, Rikku managed an easy shrugs. They'd probably be better of anyway. She had every intention of buying some weapons to replace hers. Rikku didn't want to be helpless in this place, but she supposed that wouldn't be setting the best example.

"Its ok guys, I'll see you shortly. Besides, it is going to be really reaaaaaally boring. Maybe if there is time, later you can show me your favorite place in the market! Back here then?" Seeing Cecily's nod, Rikku decided that she might as well take off and giving Rinoa and Locke a little wave, she wandered into the crowds.

Though at first she had been struck by how different everything was and how diverse the people were, but very slowly, with each person she passed, she noticed that there was in fact a similarity between the people. Whatever the shape or color of their faces, they all bore the same defeated expression. Rikku shuddered slightly. It was kind of creepy as were some of the looks she got, because true to the comments that the others has made, she _did_ stand out.

_Oh well…_

Deciding to ignore them all, Rikku turned her attention to her search for a good pair of daggers. Tapping on the shoulder of a burly over-sized hypello, she asked if he knew the best place to go, hoping that he understood common. After a moment of spastic coughing which Rikku feared was his language, he did indeed burst out with several recommendations of where she could go as well as an offer to buy a distinctly odd looking bug, which Rikku declined. Taking a step back, she bumped into a boy about her own age. He was of average height, his messy brown hair pushed off his forehead with a navy bandana. Giving him an absent-minded smile with an apology she ran off. Going to each merchant the man had mentioned, it wasn't until she got to the last one that she found what she was looking for and after some half-hearted haggling, she was good to go.

As Rikku began to strap the knives into sheathes at her wrists she heard a familiar laugh. Feeling a chill run down her spine, she looked over to see the same blond man who had killed Tidus, not ten feet away. Instinctively, Rikku ducked down just as the man turned in her direction.

"A good one, Ash. I'll give you five hundred for it." Very quietly, Rikku peeked around the corner of the table to see the merchant speaking to the blond man. He held up a long blue rod in his hand, with red on the handle and a circle with a glyph on it at the end. Rikku's eyes widened.

_Yunie's summoning wand_. _How did he get it!_

"A thousand."

Rikku fumed. They were sitting there haggling over Yunie's wand. Anger warred with caution and she was only able to manage from running over there, by tuning out their voices, sitting quietly in her hiding place, and humming the hymn to the fayth in her head. She knew it would be extremely stupid to go confront him now, though she could follow and see where he went. Realizing that the voices had died down, Rikku whipped her head back around the stall, finding to her great consternation that Ash was gone.

_So much for following…_

After casting a cautious glance at her surroundings, just in case he was hiding and waiting for _her,_ she slowly got to her feet.

No Ash, only a guy with a navy bandana who gave her a peculiar look before disappearing into the crowds. She supposed that ducking behind stalls was not normal behavior, though it could just be her wonderfully bright fashion sense. Still worried that she'd been spotted by the blond keyblade wielder, Rikku waited around for another minute before she approached the merchant who Ash had been dealing with.

The wand was already laid out on the table with the rest of the wares, up on a small pedestal. Rikku walked up to it and touched it gently and the glyph at the end lit up briefly. It was Yunie's alright.

"Hands off the goods!" The merchant snapped at her. Had eyes on the back of his very shiny head, that one.

"Ease off gramps, just looking."

_For the moment anyway…_

Rikku studied him with a faint smile on her face, trying to determine if he knew it was stolen. She was sure he did, so that made her feel less guilty about stealing it back. Not that Rikku ever felt particularly guilty about stealing. She certainly didn't have a thousand gil and the merchant was charging even more than that. Besides she wouldn't pay for it anyway given the circumstances.

"Do you know that you're selling stolen goods?" Rikku lifted her chin up and stared intently at the merchant.

"What's it to you?" Rikku frowned and lifted up the wand. The merchant caught her wrist and Rikku glared up at him.

"This was my cousin's. It's not yours to sell!"

"_Was_ your cousin's, you said so yourself. Now get out my way." The merchant released her arm, shoving her back a little at the same time as he bustled by and began rearranging his wares again. Rikku immediately began scanning the market, it would be easy enough to lift the staff, but she wasn't sure how swift justice came here, if any at all. Even though the staff had been stolen in the first place, Rikku knew if she was caught with it, she'd be the one branded a thief. Though from what she knew about this place so far… no one was going to care if one merchant got ripped off.

Thieves' luck was clearly with her because after a moment of watching the market place, Rikku saw her chance in the large rickety old wagon full of junk. A wizened old man sat at the helm, directing an equally shrunken old creature that resembled a miniature samalander with hair. The pair of them plodded their way through the crowds and had just passed the merchant's stall, when Rikku moved into action. Slipping past the cart, it was quick work to pull out the two hinges in the back of the wagon causing the back flap to open and all of the junk that had been piled so precariously, to tumble down, flooding the merchant's stall with an assortment of rusty old knickknacks and a cloud of murky dust. Immediately the merchant began to put up a ruckus and man came down off the wagon. In a matter of seconds the pair were already arguing, Rikku felt a moment's guilt not sure if the wagon-bearer could handle the merchant, but surprisingly, he demonstrated quite a lot of feistiness for such an old guy and was certainly holding his own. With the merchant thus occupied, all she had to do was stroll over, snatch up the staff and move on her way. Having no intention of lingering, Rikku hurried through the square towards where she was planning on meeting Cecily when a man stepped in front of her blocking her way.

Rikku found herself staring at the smirking face of the blond, Ash.

"That was fairly nice work." Rikku knew immediately that he had seen her lift the staff… and since it wasn't exactly an object that could be easily hidden on a person, especially on Rikku's very short person, so he couldn't exactly deny it. He had after all just sold the staff to that vendor. Though that wasn't really what she was worried about, she was afraid that he'd recognize her. It was also more difficult than she'd imagined coming face to face with someone she'd seen kill her best friend. This wasn't the time though to do anything about it, so she'd plead ignorance and hope he didn't know her. Knowing her eyes were her most damning feature, Rikku kept them cast downward, shaking her head.

"I'm sorry?"

"Don't be. Most of the thieves around here do so with more subtlety. You though get full points for entertainment value."

Rikku found she was rather offended by the remark. She could be subtle if she wanted to.

"Well sometimes the situation doesn't warrant it!" Rikku risked a look at him.

"No arguments there, personally I think subtlety is all very boring… And don't worry. I'm not going to take the wand away from you… as far as I can see, what's lost is lost. I am curious though, as to why you'd choose that."

Rikku inwardly flinched. If he'd heard the conversation with the merchant as well… then he certainly knew where she was from… Rikku prepared herself to fight if she needed to. It was hard enough not to smack the smile off of his face anyway. Instead she just shrugged, lifting the staff up.

"Just looked like it might be worth something."

His voice sounded amused when he responded. "You have a good eye for value."

Then after a moment he added more. "So do I…" Very quickly he reached out, tilting her chin up so she was looking him in the eyes. "You look familiar." Ash let go of her chin and then unbelievably he winked at her. "Have I hit on you before?" Rikku recoiled inwardly. That was one of the worst lines she had ever heard in her entire life and coming from _him_ it was all the more appalling.

"Don't think so… if you used a line like that, I would have remembered…As much as it pained me to do so." Ash laughed and shook his head slightly at her. Rikku had been serious though. She smiled sweetly at him, her hand clenched around Yuna's summoning wand so tightly that her fist was white. "Now if you'll excuse me…"

"Not so fast… I was thinking… you probably need a place to hang low…" Suddenly he stopped, lifting his head and turning to look in the direction of the tower.

"Well some other time then." He gave her a jaunty grin and with no further explanation, hurried off through crowds. Rikku shook her head, feeling disturbed. She was sure he had recognized her. She didn't know what his game was and she was sorry she hadn't done something about him while she had the chance. Trying to ignore the feeling of dread that settled over her, Rikku moved back into the main market to find Cecily, sticking towards the edges so she could avoid most of the crowds.

Rikku hadn't gotten very far, when two boys donned in blue bandanas appeared at her side, each taking an arm and herding her towards the closest alley.

"Hey, what's the deal!"

Rikku found herself amidst a group of people, both boys and girls with ages ranging from twelve to their early twenties. As she looked around at the smudged faces, she noticed that blue bandana fashion trend was going strong with this group. Rikku looked at the two boys on either side of her since as of yet, no one had responded. It was actually kind of creepy the way they all just stared. She wondered what they were waiting for, but with two rather dirty teenagers digging their hands into her arm, Rikku decided that she at least wasn't going to wait any longer. "Right well it was fantabulous to meet you all and I'll just be on my way." Her remark was met with a tightening of the grip the two boys had on her arms. Flicking her wrist, she smacked the guy on her right in the head with Yuna's summoning wand, before leaning in and twisting her arm at the same time, surprising him just enough to let go. Following it up with a swift kick in the shins to the guy who had a hold on her other arm, she hit him once in the stomach with the bottom of the staff and she was free.

Turning she saw that the exit out of the alley was now blocked and she recognized _Cecily_ by the entrance. She was about to say something when a boy around her own age finally spoke. He had a thin face under a mop of curly brown hair, and dark brown eyes that were hard to read, his tone though was clearly mocking. There was something familiar about him.

"We don't take kindly to _unfamiliars_ poaching. Bad for business… not a promising start in a new world."

Rikku sighed slightly. She must be losing her touch. Had the whole marketplace been watching her actions!

"I wasn't poaching, I was taking back what's rightfully mine… well kinda." Rikku tried to think of how to explain it. "It's an inheritance." She clarified and she wasn't going to explain anymore than that. She highly doubted that these people had asked permission to begin stealing around here and Rikku could tell they were thieves, she could recognize those of her own talents. Though she supposed it was clear enough by what he was saying. "No concern of yours…"

"Yeah well, there's a code you see... let's call it an honor between thieves..." Rikku could see a few of the younger ones snickering behind the boy's back. "Steal in the market and it's ours… respect for a more organized _guild _you could say…it's only fair. And you _never_ consort with the enemy."

Rikku looked down as she tried to figure out if any of that made sense. "Riiiiight… well I haven't been _consorting_ with anyone."

He shook his head. "You were just talking to Ash. He runs the black market in Cocytus and furthermore is one of _them_. That's two out of three."

Rikku scowled. "None of you listen! " She turned to look back at Cecily. "I explained to you before. I don't know what problem it is that you have with me, but—" Rikku cut off as she felt someone try to lift the staff off of her. She took a step to the side, moving the staff so it slid along their hand before thrusting upward giving the hand a good smack. Yunie almost certainly wouldn't approve of the use Rikku was making of her summoning wand. The boy who had tried to take it wasn't exactly happy, but then no thief liked it when their trick was foiled. As he swung at her, Rikku ducked under his arm and slipped past him, pulling a dagger from his belt as she went.

"Look, here's your take." She threw the knife so it embedded itself in the ground a few feet in front of the curly-haired boy. He swung at her again when a furious keening noise erupted violently into the air. It wasn't one smooth tone, but jilting, creating an unpleasant cacophony that jarred her ears. Almost immediately, the faces of those around her took on the same look, one of complete and utter fear. Then when the sound stopped, chaos ensued as everyone scattered in different directions.

"What's going on!" Rikku looked around frantically, searching for Cecily because she at least knew her. She saw her turning the corner towards the market, followed by the thief leader and Rikku took off running after them. The people in the market were already in a panic, stalls being knocked over, people being trampled, and the sounds of slamming doors as people moved for shelter. Suddenly it was all silenced as an inhuman scream cut through the air. Rikku looked up, her eyes widening as she saw several winged black shapes diving off the tower before catching a draft and heading in their direction. Cecily and the thief had also paused, watching the same sight.

"Where's Rinoa and Locke!"

Cecily cast a glance at her, horror filling her expression.

"I left them with---" Rikku didn't wait to hear the rest, she could see them at the far end, huddling under an overturned cart. As she moved into the madness, more of those _heartless_ appeared, a different variety then she'd seen. They were large and powerful, running about on four legs as they pounced on those who hadn't managed to escape. Rikku ran for the two children, dodging the damaged stalls and trying to avoid both the frantic men and the monsters. She was almost to the cart when a gigantic heartless with serpentine limbs flipped the cart off of Rinoa and Locke, destroying their shelter. The pair tried to scurry away, but the beast reached out again, wrapping one of its tentacle limbs around Rinoa's waist. Locke held onto his sister's hands trying to pull her down, but the _heartless_ knocked him aside with another tail-like arm. Rikku jumped forward, one of her daggers already in her hand as she slashed at one of its arms. It fell to the ground with a sickening thud leaving a slimy residue on her knife, but didn't stop, just lifted Rinoa higher and began to move out of the market.

"Get Locke!" Rikku yelled back at Cecily before running after the creature, trying to think of a plan to make it stop. It wasn't stealing hearts, but instead just knocked things aside as it continued on its rampage. Rikku looked around for something else to use and settled for tossing some old kitchenware at its head.

"Stop you stupid ugly son of shoopuff! Let her go!" Rikku didn't think the creature would listen, but she couldn't help but scream at it. In a final act of desperation, Rikku hurled Yuna's summoning wand at it. "I said drop her!"

To her surprise, the creature _did _drop Rinoa and turning around it focused several beady eyes on her before charging.

_Oh, shoopuff._

With a final glance of regret at Yunie's summoning wand, Rikku ran like hell back through the trampled market and under an open gate at the far end, with the heartless still giving chase. The area seemed to grow darker, but Rikku had no time to stop and consider this as other swarms of heartless decided to take pursuit. Turning a corner, she dodged through a second gate and entered into what she assumed was the seventh district. As she passed through an alley, the heartless burst forward with extra strength, charging for her when a hand shot out, catching her wrist in a vice-like grip and yanking her towards a glowing portal that wavered in the wall. As she was propelled towards it, she caught one foot and an arm against the side, which was thankfully still sturdy, and tried to pull back. Then the heartless charged and Rikku realized it was probably rather stupid of her to resist at all and abruptly she let herself be pulled in, the momentum causing both her and her kidnapper/rescuer to tumble to the ground.

Immediately rising to her knees, she brushed aside the blond braids that had fallen into her face and looked up into a pair of impossibly vivid blue eyes.


	11. A Game of Inquiry

Author's Note: Ok, Ok, I lied... Months passed, no new chapter... but I am still working on it when I can. I founda couple errors, so I might go back and change a few tiny details in the story... but nothing major. Xtreme Nuisance... cookie points for you, that is _exactly_ what it relates to.

Oh right... and my sister wanted me to thank her... for being a muse or something... so thanks... and thank you everyone for the reviews, they make me happy :D... and my sister too. Hopefully I will update quicker next time... I have ideas for the next chapter so that is likely.

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**Chapter Eleven: _A Game of Inquiry_**

"Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple."

-Dr. Seuss

The moon was full in the sky, shining down brightly and illuminating Rikku's delicate features with a soft glow. Riku didn't need the light to see the startled expression on her face, but it meant that she could see him as well. She was dressed _differently_ then before and Riku wasn't quite sure what to make of her. They stared at each other in silence for a moment, both still in the places where they had fallen. Riku was still trying to puzzle out why he'd gone and saved her a second time. Just chance, instinct had kicked in_, or m_aybe he just liked complications.

_Makes things more interesting._

He was lying to himself. Really, he should be done with all of this. He didn't know what he was trying to achieve when he saved her that first time. It was all based on a feeling, an instinct. True, Riku had his suspicions about what had happened, with the keyblade, the hearts, with everything, but that didn't explain his actions. _No wait_, he knew why. Riku just liked to _piss them off_. He did his job, he was good at it, but he couldn't deny that it was amusing to see the _others_ screw up. This would certainly put a hinge into their plans if he was right. He told himself that it wasn't because he actually cared about the outcome. It was just that he wasn't going to do them any favors

The girl though, she was a puzzle. There was something odd about everything that had happened in Spira, something he couldn't quite grasp and she was at the center of it all. _Rikku_. There was irony to the name that Riku couldn't deny. And the girl herself, well that was what he had come to Cocytus to find out about… to see if there were any _developments_. He'd been there earlier in the week, but he'd been there for other reasons. Any prolonged visit to Cocytus that wasn't a direct order would cause suspicion. Still, he'd been able to meet with Leon and Julia very briefly. He found out a little about the girl then, but not much.

Riku didn't have time to think on it further though because as they both got their feet, Rikku suddenly yelled in her language before lunging at him.

"Ed'c ymm ouin vyimd! Oui gemmat dras! Veaht! Sintanan! Oui pnuikrd dras! Yuna, Tidus, ajanouha! Frana ec Cbeny!" Riku wasn't versed in gibberish and he had no idea what she was saying, though he was able to pick out the name of the summoner woman, Yuna. He could deduce easily enough what she was talking about from that alone, though even without it, her anger was clear and Riku stepped quickly to the side as she moved for him. He wasn't _particularly_ concerned. She was a lot shorter than he was and didn't look that strong. Besides, anger made most people stupid when they fought. Turning as she did, he inclined his head slightly.

"_I'm sorry,_ you're going to have to speak more clearly for me to understand." He smirked at her, his voice taunting. It was a test of sorts. He needed to know what he was dealing with. Actually, the fact that she spoke a different language was unique. Since all worlds were linked, there were as many similarities as there were divergences. It was rare to come across a world that didn't speak Common and her world for the most part had. The blonde's face flushed slightly in anger, a reaction that amused him. Then she attacked again, this time reverting back to the commontongue.

"It's your fault their dead! What happened to my world?" Riku was certain that she had gotten some version of the truth anyway, but apparently she needed to hear it from him. _While she tried to wound or kill him, apparently_. Jumping back again as she swung at him, he couldn't completely avoid it when she swung at him again, her fist grazing the side of his cheek right before she aimed an extremely unfriendly kick at him, one clearly intended for maximum pain. Riku wasn't about to take that kick and he caught her foot before it could make impact. He wasn't actually trying to hurt her, or at least there was no need to yet, so he hadn't been fighting back, but continuing with these attack and dodge plays were not going to accomplish anything. Rikku glared at him, but he just shook his head keeping a hold of her foot. It amused him to see her hopping around on the one foot anyway as she tried to keep her balance.

"You want some answers or do you want to keep fighting?"

"_Both!" _She shouted back at him somewhat childishly, making Riku grin.

"Fine." Then he used the foot he still held in his hands to flip her backwards. Surprisingly though, she was able to twist in the air and instead of falling on her back in the sand, she landed in a crouch, springing to her feet again in a matter of seconds. Riku was right, her blows weren't very strong, but she _was_ fast, _maybe_ even faster than he was. She also knew how to fight, which he didn't really expect given his first impression of her, but it made it more interesting even if it didn't serve any purpose.

Rikku leaned in to throw another blow at him, but he blocked grabbing her arm, twisting it and whirling her around so her back was to him and she was much closer then before as he gripped her wrist so her arm was locked across her stomach and immobile. To an outside observer, it almost looked like they were dancing. Any fighter with some skill would know better. Riku could have gone higher into a necklock, but he just wanted her to stay still and listen without him having to stave off any blows. Riku moved his head a little lower, since she barely came up to his shoulder, his voice low and clear.

"Your world was consumed by the darkness and would have been whether I was there or not." Rikku tilted her head back so she could look up at him and he was close enough to see the emerald swirls in her eyes darken with the fierceness in her gaze.

"Liar!" The blonde elbowed him hard in the gut and his grip loosened enough for her to slip away. Riku shrugged, barely registering the blow.

"Sometimes." He acknowledged with a smirk. "But not about this and fighting now isn't going to get your world back." Riku also knew from bitter experience that _nothing_ would bring them back. It probably wasn't the best idea to inform her of that though, not at the moment anyway.

"It might make me feel better!" She shouted back at him, braids flying as she lashed out at him again. She was clearly getting tired though. After all she _had _been running from the heartless when he pulled her through the portal. Riku decided that this had gone on long enough.

"You know this is hardly the kind of _grateful_ attitude one would expect someone to have towards the person who saved their life. _Twice_, I might add." Riku told her, exasperation finally leaking into his voice and as he spoke, he blocked her arm, hooking it with his as she moved to elbow him in the face and finally managed to sweep her legs out from under her. Following her down, he moved his grip on her arm to her wrist pushing it to the ground as he pressed his knee against her stomach and the top of her legs to prevent her from kicking him. Angrier than before, she yelled at him, slipping back into her native tongue again. "Sintanehk pycdynt, cdibet cuh uv y cruubivv, cehcbyfh!"

"Now, that didn't sound very complimentary." Shaking his head at her he was about to grab her other hand so she couldn't hit him either when he felt the sharp prick of a knife against his neck.

"Good, it wasn't supposed to. Now let me up or I am going to cut you and it will hurt lots."

Riku took it as a good sign that she hadn't pulled out the knife before. She wanted her answers just as he wanted his. She might have been venting her anger, but he didn't think she was actually going to try and slit his throat. Riku just stared at her, their faces were close, and Riku knew he had the habit of unsettling people with just a look, because of his glowing eyes. Hopefully that would work to his advantage.

"No you won't."

"I will! Just try me!" She scowled at him, but still didn't move the knife any deeper.

"I _am_."

"Well ok then! Cause I'm gonna do it!"

Riku smirked. "Do what you have to do." Riku's cool blue eyes locked with Rikku's swirly green ones and a minute passed as they engaged in a silent battle of wills. She wasn't going to cut him, he knew it and so did she. He also wasn't going to let her up until he knew she wasn't going to immediately try and hit him again. The result was that they were at an impasse and it was all a matter of who caved first.

Riku was more patient then she was though and eventually she released an exaggerated sigh of exasperation, letting her drop back onto the sand, though the knife was still at his throat. Almost immediately, Rikku lifted her head up again giving him a glare.

"You are a _slimy _son of a samalander, do you know that?" She sighed again. "Fine fine, what do you want, meanie?" Riku decided just to ignore the odd insults, moving his face a little closer to hers as he looked into her eyes.

"Just don't try to hit me again if I let you up, I just want to talk to you. You want answers don't you?" Then without waiting for the response, Riku released her wrist and stood up. After a moment, Rikku did the same, tossing her long braids back from her face before speaking, the defiant glare still on her face.

"I would have you know… anyway, what _is_ your proposal then? I want to know why you were in Spira, why… it happened."

Riku had no intention of telling her everything, but some things were common knowledge and other things wouldn't matter. "I'm suggesting an exchange of knowledge. A question for a question?"

"Can that count as your first question?" Rikku asked him, somehow managing to make her gaze simultaneously serious and mischeivous. He shrugged lightly at her. It wouldn't matter much.

"Why not."

"Good, my turn. Who are you _really_?"

"I'm really… Riku." Admittedly, Riku knew she was asking for more than that, but he wasn't eager to reveal much about his past. Not yet anyway…

She frowned at him.

"What you can't just say your name, that's cheating and I already know it!" Riku just looked at her and finally she sighed.

"_Fine_. Where are you from?"

Riku shook his head "That's your second question; it's my turn to ask one."

"What? That's not fair! That one didn't count!"

"I answered didn't I?" He watched as she grudgingly nodded. "Then I guess _it counts._" Then he nodded his head slightly down the beach. "Come on. We'll talk while we walk." Without waiting for a response, he began to head down the beach, expecting her to follow.

"No way! I'm not going anywhere with you." Riku sighed and turned back to look at her. She hadn't moved from her spot though her arms were now crossed and she had a defiant expression on her face.

"_Too late._ Do you want to stay out here forever?"

"No. I want to go back… if not to my own world then to Cocytus." She turned away stubbornly.

"Your world's gone and it won't come back. You're going to have to face up to that sooner or later." Riku wasn't saying this to be cruel, but because it was the truth. As far as Riku knew, everyone in that particular world, except for the girl in front of him, was dead. Especially since Mikael had not sent a group in. Even though Leon probably thought Riku had no idea the king was alive and behind all these efforts, Riku wasn't an idiot. Riku just wasn't positive where he was. Breaking out of his thoughts he nodded slightly at Rikku. He still needed his answers. "I'll take you back to Cocytus. Just not yet."

Rikku looked at him silently for a moment then stubbornly shook her head. "How about I walk."

Riku sighed. "You can't just walk from here. Haven't you been paying attention? You went through a portal. We're in another world." Actually this wasn't the complete truth, but he wasn't about to tell her that. Instead of growing even more agitated at his words, as Riku had supposed she would, curiosity gleamed in the blonde's green, the darker strands of emerald seeming to brighten with the emotion.

"Just like that?" Riku nodded slightly in response.

"More or less."

"So… could I travel through or open a portal, or whatever it is, by myself?"

Riku smirked slightly. "You're turn to answer a question first." Riku started walking again and by this time the blonde had caught up to him and was walking alongside him. Rikku gave him a dismissive hand gesture.

"_Veha_, fine, ask away. But only one mind you and I'm paying close attention so don't try to be sneaky and slip in even more." As Rikku spoke, she lifted her finger up in the air to indicate one along with hers statement before twirling the same finger in a circle in front of his face.

Riku shook his head at her as he caught the hand she was waving in front of his face. Keeping it as gazed at her for a moment in faint exasperation

"Don't do that."

There was no harshness in Riku's voice, but immediately she tried to yank her hand away, her hair falling across her face in the process. Riku let go of her hand and watched her in bemusement as she made a futile attempt to blow the hair off of her face. Unconsciously lifting his hand again, he moved it to brush away the lock of blonde hair that obscured one of her eyes, his knuckles brushing against her cheek for a brief instant. Rikku appeared as startled by the gesture as he felt and Riku realized that they had come to a full stop. Shoving his hand forcefully into his pocket, Riku began to walk again, faster then before, not checking to see if she was following though after a moment he could feel her beside him. They walked in silence for a minute or two, before Riku abruptly turned to look at her again.

"What exactly _is_ a summoner?" Riku knew that they had been sent for the summoner's heart. Ultimately, it hadn't been the one they were looking for, but there was _something_ on that world, something that was throwing everything off. He could sense it, but he couldn't place his finger on what it was.

Pain flickered across Rikku's face, but disappeared with in the blink of an eye, her features composed as if it never even happened. She remained silent for a moment and Riku thought that she wasn't going to answer, but then she began to speak, her words pouring out with no need for prompting.** "**My world has been through a lot…" Rikku shook her head, correcting herself by switching to the past tense. It was clearly an effort to do so. "_Went_ through a lot… The very name, Spira, is named for the spiral of death… a cycle that started over a thousand years ago when two of the greatest cities warred with one another. There was always a lot of debate about what happened… but I guess the reasons are not important. A thousand years ago, a great fiend called Sin appeared and destroyed the great city of Zanarkand. That was only the beginning. Whether the punishment was deserved or not, Sin was responsible for all the death… It was literally the incarnation of death and destruction and no matter how many times it was defeated it always came back… the summoners were people willing to sacrifice their lives to give the people just a little peace.

"They prayed to the fayth, those who essentially died at Zanarkand… and were granted the power of aeons. All summoners underwent a pilgrimage to the ruins of Zanarkand, praying to the fayth all around Spira in order to get all the aeons so they could get the final aeon. By summoning this aeon, they would then be able to defeated Sin… but would also die in the process… and the guardians, the men and women who traveled with them to protect the summoner on their journey… well when the final aeon defeated Sin, would be transformed into a new sin… in hibernation I guess you could call it, for about ten years or so, before causing havoc again. It was just pain and suffering over and over… and the only people who could help calm that pain, the summoners, were destined to die if they wanted to bring the Calm… They also preformed sendings you see… sending the spirits of those killed by sin on, so they didn't become fiends. I never believed in Yevon or its teachings… I am after all an Al Bhed… and the people in the farplane were anything more than images from memory… but the fiends were real enough… without the summoners there would have been even more death caused by the unsent. When Yunie danced it was…"

By this time Riku could clearly see her eyes were wet with tears and she abruptly stopped talking. He _almost_ felt badly for asking, but his interest far outweighed any minute concern. Riku couldn't yet figure out how it all connected, though people willing to sacrifice themselves for others or at least _most _of them anyway were probably a little more likely to be pure of heart. It wasn't a guarantee. Sometimes people acted in a self-sacrificing manner solely because they had a death wish. Still, her explanation proved that the summoner _was _the most likely candidate on the world… which only muddled things further. There was much in her explanation that he didn't understand, such as her reference to the far plane… in fact each word she uttered only seemed to create more questions, but she clearly wasn't going to continue to go on as she had. At the very least, her words seemed to indicate that there _were_ other summoners or had been. It still didn't explain what was so different about Rikku though. Before he could try to push another question, she spoke again. "Anyway, it's my question now… About those portals? Can I create them or travel through them on my own? "

"No." Riku's response was only a half-truth. Mostpeople _couldn't _open portals… though some could and he suspected that she might be one of them. Furthermore, anyone though could travel through an open portal. That was how the _Hoi Polloi_ got the people out before their worlds succumbed completely to the darkness. It was in everyone's best interest that Rikku was not aware of this right now though. It would be a bad idea to set _her _loose on the worlds, she seemed to attract trouble, and furthermore, Riku knew she was going to be important to both sides. He could sense it. It still bothered him that he couldn't sense much more then that. For most people, Riku could get an immediate read. He knew the scent of darkness. A person's aura was a reflection of what was in their heart. Riku's own was blackened long ago or maybe had never had the light.

Rikku's tear stained eyes seemed to dry immediately at his response as she gave him an incredulous look. "_No?_ That's _it_! Care to elaborate!" Riku considered this for a moment before shaking his head slightly,

"No." She scowled at him again, an expression he was getting used to. He ignored it and pushed on. "How did you know the summoner?"

"What you didn't do research before you killed everyone?"

"I didn't kill them; the heartless did and would have even if I were not present. This is getting tedious, just answer the question." At this point, a small structure was evident just off the beach and Riku began to head for it. Watching her out of the corner of his eye, he watched the expressions warring on her face as she struggled with her irritation and whether she wanted to answer him or not. Reaching the porch, he pushed open the sturdy wooden door, holding it so Rikku could head in. The door hadn't been locked. Few people knew about this place and it wasn't as if there was much of value. It was just where Riku came when he wanted to disappear for a while. The island reminded him of his old home, the one he'd flooded in darkness by opening a door.

Rikku paused outside the door, without going in and impatiently began to tap her foot. Riku gave her a questioning look and she shook her head vehemently.

"I'm not going in there." Releasing an exasperated sigh, Riku leaned forward so the door closed, leaving his hand resting against it.

"Why not? You've come this far. It's just a place to stay for the night. It's not safe to go back to Cocytus now." That's when Riku realized she was doing it deliberately. She wasn't afraid, though she probably should be. She was just trying to be annoying. Shaking his head slightly he smirked and leaned down, until his face was close to hers.

"Fine. Stay out here." Straightening up, he gestured slightly with his head towards the beach.

"Just keep a watch out for the sandleeches." Riku walked inside and closed the door firmly and flicked the lock. If she wanted to stay out there then she could, but if she wanted inside, she'd have to beg. He'd only been _partly_ joking about the leeches. Since she was being stubborn, he didn't think he'd get any more answers tonight anyway. So he decided he might as well go ahead and get some sleep. Kicking off his shoes, he undid the buckle that held the belt with the keyblade sheathes and set it on the floor by the hammock. Pulling of his shirt, he just tossed it over towards the table in the center of the room and it hooked around one of the chairs. Then climbing into the hammock, he waited for a moment, listening for Rikku, before falling asleep in about ten seconds flat.

Perhaps an hour later, though it only felt like moments, Riku awoke to the sound of repeated knocking and Rikku's muffled voice frantically calling on the other side of the door.


End file.
